A Pirate's Life For Me
by Key and Lock
Summary: Russell is an aspiring pirate. He doesn't want to be King of the Pirates however, he just wants to have an adventure. And he is about to have the adventure of a lifetime. Accepting OCs.
1. Chapter 1

A Pirate's Life for Me

The Next Greatest Pirate

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. Russell is a character that was submitted by wildroadrunner, so I don't own him either.

Pirates. That was the word on everyone's lips. Pirates and come to Crimson Island. Everyone was worried, but the mayor assured everyone that they had nothing to fear. The town had nothing of value, so as long as they gave them what they wanted and left them alone, everything would be fine.

That seemed to be the case at first, but once the pirates had gotten (stolen) the supplies they needed, they went to the tavern and got drunk. And drunk pirates were never a good thing.

Julie was the barmaid at the tavern that the pirates had taken over. Before they had come business had slow, now, business was practically dead. The pirates had chased everyone out and were taking all of the drinks. Julie knew that they wouldn't pay and that it would take months to earn back all the money for the drinks that were being wasted on the pirates. She sighed and looked up at the door as it opened to reveal a stranger.

At first she thought that it was another pirate, but he came in calmly, sat down and ordered some water. The man wore black cargo pants, black shoes, a teal t-shirt, and black fingerless leather gloves with metal studs over the knuckles. He had short copper colored hair, teal eyes, and was slightly tanned. He appeared to be in his late twenties and didn't seem bothered by all of the pirates.

Julie looked away from the stranger when she heard the sound of a table breaking. Two of the pirates had gotten into a fight. She rushed over to try to prevent them from causing too much damage.

"Please stop! Your going to break everything!" Julie cried desperately.

But, the pirates were enjoying the fight and would not listen. They shoved Julie down.

"Stop wrecking our fun!" "Yeah, can't you fix a few broken tables?" they called out.

Julie tried to rise, but one of the pirates slapped her back down. "No one said you could get up," he snarled.

He was suddenly drenched by a glass of water that had been thrown at him. "Didn't your mother ever to you any manners?" the stranger from earlier asked.

The pirate growled and lunged at the young man. The young man stepped to the side and punched the man in the side of the head, knocking him out. Theo ther pirates were shocked, but, then they drew their weapons and surrounded him. "Alright, who's next?" the stranger asked grinning as the pirates attacked.

The young man jumped and let the pirates collide with each other. When he landed he kicked a nearby pirate and grabbed another and tossed him into the wall. He punched one that tried to stab him with a knife and knocked a gun out of another's hand.

After a few minuets, all of the pirates were unconscious. The stranger seemed pleased with this and sat back down. "Can, I get another glass of water?" he asked.

Julie and the bartender stared at him for a moment before they realized what he had said, and Julie got another glass for him.

"Thanks," he said as he gulped down the water.

"Um, excuse me sir?" Julie asked.

"Huh? Oh yeah the money. Sorry about that," the man said as he began to pull out a pouch of beli.

"No, no, no not that," Julie said shaking her head. "I just wanted to know your name. That's all,"

"My name? It's Russell," the stranger said.

"Well Russell, thank you for your help and no charge for the drinks," the bartender said.

"Are you sure? I don't mind," Russell said.

"You saved Julie from those thugs, I couldn't possibly charge you," the bartender said.

"Yeah, those guys give pirates a bad name," Russell said drinking his water.

"What do you mean?" Julie asked as she sat down next to him.

"Well, I'm a pirate, but I'm just in it for the fun," Russell said.

"Fun! What's so fun about robbing people and getting chased by marines!" Julie said shocked,

"Well, you don't necessarily have to rob people. Besides, being chased by marines, finding treasure, and having adventures, who wouldn't have fun doing that?" Russell asked.

"When you put it like that, it does sound fun. But, why not just call your self an adventurer? That's legal, so you won't be chased by marines," Julie said.

"An adventurer and a pirate are the same thing. Just different names, pirates go places they want to and so do adventurers. Besides, it's not fun unless there's a challenge," Russell said.

"You mean the marines?" Julie asked.

"Yep, I don't have anything against them personally, but having them chase me and my crew would be fun," Russell said.

"So where is your crew?" Julie asked.

"I don't know. I haven't got any yet," Russell said.

Before they could continue there conversation a loud voice from outside called out. "Whose the guy who beat my crew!"

"I believe that's my queue," Russell said standing up and heading outside.

"You're not going out there are you?" Julie asked.

"Of course I am. That's got to be the captain of these guys," he said gesturing to the unconscious pirates. "So he's probably somewhat strong. This will be a great way to test and see how good I am,"

Russell walked out and saw the captain, a short round man wearing an outfit of many different colors, and one of the pirates from the bar who apparently slipped away during the fight.

"You looking for me?" Russell asked.

"This is the guy who beat my whole crew!" the man asked, shocked.

"Y-yes sir," the crew member said nervously.

"Listen here you," the man said facing Russell. "My name's Captain Patch, if you beg for forgiveness, I might let you live," he said smugly.

"Captain Patch, I would have guessed Captain Rainbow, or Captain Flower based on your outfit," Russell said honestly.

"W-WHAT! No one insults Captain Patch!" he said as he drew his pistol. "NOW DIE!" he fired off several shots at Russell, but Russell jumped up and landed behind him.

"Finally, a real challenge," Russell said grinning. "Let's do this," he said as he rushed up to Patch and kicked him a wall.

"Arg, who are you!" Patch demanded.

Russell grinned. "I'm Russell, the next greatest pirate!"

AN: Alright, sorry that this is a little late, but I was busier than I thought I would be. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please give me some feedback. Also I made a copy of the pirate OC form down below so you don't have to go to my other story to submit your pirate OCs. Please review.

Name:

Age:

Gender:

Race:

Position/Job:

Weapon/Devil Fruit/Special Attacks:

History:

Family:

Personality:

Physical Description:

Friend or Foe:

Likes:

Dislikes:

Dream/Goal:

Other:


	2. Battle Between Pirates

Battle Between Pirates

Zen Treze belongs to shadowjohn101 and Russell belongs to wildroadrunner

Russell charged at Patch and punched him back into the wall. Patch growled as he got up and pulled out two pistols and opened fire at Russell. But, Russell was quick and he took cover behind a nearby cart.

"Hey, be careful with those. You could hurt someone," Russell said as he crouched behind the cart.

"That's the idea!" Patch said as he continued to shoot at the cart hoping to hit Russell.

However the cart suddenly came flying straight at Patch and he was forced to dive to the side to avoid being hit. Russell charged at him as he was getting up and knocked him into the air.

He followed up his attack by jumping up after Patch, and striking him several times while in mid-air. When Patch hit the ground he groaned but he did not get up.

"Is that all you can handle?" Russell asked disappointed. "I was hoping I might have top use my scythe on you. You must be really weak if I could beat you with my bare hands,"

Russell sighed and turned around to go back to the tavern, but he stopped when he saw a pirate holding a kid hostage.

"Unless you want this kid to die, you're going to hold still and let Captain Patch finish you off," the pirate said. 

Russell glanced behind him, and saw Patch get up and draw another pistol. "Hah, you new pirates are too soft. You don't have what it takes to deal with real cutthroats like us," he said as he aimed at Russell.

"Hey, maybe you are worth using my scythe on," Russell said grinning.

"Why are you grinning!" Patch yelled. "Your about to get shot and there's nothing you can do!"

"Oh, I'm sure something will happen that will turn this whole thing around," Russell said.

Suddenly the pirate who was holding the kid hostage let go and collapsed with, what looked like a bone sticking out of his back.

"Like that," Russell said looking at his savior.

He was a tall man. Easily six foot, had messy brown hair that reached his neck and tan skin. He had bright green eyes and many scars running all over his body. He wore black cargo shorts, a white sleeveless shirt, and combat boots.

"I don't like it when thugs hurt kids," he said, his voice was cold and he looked ready to kill again.

Patch fired off several shots at him, but the man's bones came out of his body and made a shield around him. Patch kept firing ,but it was pointless, the bullets couldn't penetrate the thick bone. The stranger walked towards him as one of his arms was incased in a sharp, blade-like, bone. Despite Patch's attack the stranger kept advancing until he was right in front of him.

He picked up Patch with one arm and prepared to stab him with the other one. However, just before his bladed arm reached Patch, it was blocked by a scythe.

"There's no need to kill him," Russell said , holding back the deadly limb.

"His men held a little kid hostage and he was about to kill you. Why are you helping him?" the stranger asked.

"Don't get me wrong. This guy is pathetic, and I was going to beat him up. But, killing is taking a little to far, don't you think?" Russell asked.

"Not at all," the stranger said coldly.

"Hmm, you seem pretty tough. How about we fight?" Russell asked.

"W-what?" the stranger asked.

"If you win you can finish this guy off, but, if I win you join my crew. How does that sound?" Russell asked.

"Fine. The name's Zen by the way," Zen said.

"And I'm Russell. Okay let's get started!" Russell said jumping back.

"Alright here I come," Zen yelled as he ran at Russell with his bone blade held at his side.

He swiped at Russell but Russell blocked it with his scythe and jumped over Zen. When he landed he spun around and struck at Zen with his scythe. But, Zen parried it with his strange weapon and threw several bones from his hand. Russell deflected them with his scythe and grinned at Zen.

"Now this is fun! You ate some kind of Devil Fruit didn't you," Russell said.

"Yes, I ate the hone hone no mi. it doubled the bones in my body, made them stronger, and let's me manipulate them completely," Zen said.

"This is getting fun," Russell said as he charged at Zen.

Zen grinned back and rushed to meet Russell. They parried each others blows, both of them waiting for an opening. Russell swung his scythe at Zen's head and Zen blocked it. But, Russell kicked him in the stomach and jumped back. Waiting for Zen to attack.

"You're really good. Were did you learn to fight?" Russell asked.

"I'd rather not say," Zen said as he incased his torso in bone armor.

He rushed towards Russell and swung at his scythe knocking it out of his hands. Russell reacted quickly, he punched Zen in the side of the face and jumped up to grab his scythe. However, Zen recovered quicker than Russell anticipated and he grabbed Russell's leg and tossed him to the side.

"Hmm. You know, I just realized that there isn't a reason for us to keep fighting," Russell said as he got back up.

"What do you mean?" Zen asked.

"That guy you wanted kill, the pirate captain. He left," Russell said.

Zen looked around. Sure enough, Patch and his men had left and were currently sailing away as quickly as they could. "You said if you beat I had to join your crew right?" Zen asked.

"Yeah I did," Russell replied.

"Well, this fight's not over then," Zen said as he readied himself.

"But, there's no up-side for you if you win," Russell said.

"If you're good enough to beat and I have to join your crew then I will have joined the crew of a very powerful pirate. And that's good enough for me," Zen said.

Russell grinned. "Let's hurry up and finish this then," Russell charged straight at Zen he launched a flurry of punches and kicks, but they did little against Zen's bone armor. Russell jumped back to avoid an attack from Zen.

_I'm going to have to get my scythe back if I want to end this soon._ Russell thought. _But how?... wait I've got it!_ Russell grinned and charged at Zen again.

"Haven't you realized that attacking me head on isn't working?" Zen said as he swung at Russell. However this time Russell jumped over Zen and grabbed his scythe before spinning around.

Russell held his scythe to his side and waited, he wouldn't be the one to attack this time. He waited and stared down Zen. Then, all of a sudden Zen threw several bones from his fingers and ran straight towards Russell. Russell deflect the bones and waited until Zen was right in front of him, then he swung his scythe at his sword arm and held the bone blade back while he delivered a powerful uppercut to Zen's chin.

The blow knocked him back and he tumbled a bit before he regained his balance. "Hmm. Not bad, but, not good enough," Zen said. AS he prepared to continue their fight. However, before they could begin Julie, the barmaid, interrupted them.

"Russell, the marines are here!" she yelled.

"Huh, how did they get here so fast?" Russell asked.

"Marines!" Zen growled. He looked out at the sea and saw one of their ships coming. He ran off towards the dock ready to fight them, but Russell jumped in front of him. "Get out of my way Russell! I need to do this!

"Listen, I don't know what they did to you, but it's clear you don't like them. Still, there is no way you can take all of them on by yourself," Russell said calmly.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Zen asked angrily.

"Come with me. I could use your help and together, we could form a crew so powerful and famous, there's no way the marines will ignore us. So what do you say?" Russell asked.

"Heh, why not," Zen said. "I've seen you fight so I know your strong and determined. Alright you've got yourself a deal. Now let's go!"

Julie went up to the two and handed them a pack full of supplies. "It's not much, but it's our way of saying thank you," She said.

"Thanks Julie!" Russell said.

"There's a small boat hidden in a cove not far from here, this map will show you the way," Julie said. "Oh, and before you go, I want you to take this. Keep it as a reminder of your first challenge as a pirate," she said as she handed him a small pendant.

"Hey, this looks valuable. Are you sure you want to give it to me?" Russell asked.

"Of course!" Julie said. "What kind of pirate would you be if you didn't have some treasure,"

"Thanks," Russell said. "Alright Zen let's go," he turned around, but Zen was nowhere in sight.

"Hey! I'm over here!" Zen called out as he followed the map to the hidden cove.

"Wait for me! I'm the captain!" Russell yelled as he ran off after him.

Meanwhile on the Marine ship.

"So Hiro, do you see anything," asked the marine captain.

"Just a small ship, Captain Ozmont. Looks like there are only two people in it, but it's hard to tell from this distance," Hiro said.

"Is something the matter Hiro?" Ozmont asked.

"No sir. It's just… I can't help but feel that we missed something important," Hiro said as he watched the small boat sail out of sight.

AN: I am very sorry for the late update. I blame a combination of computer issues, writer's block, and school work. Anyway I will try to write a few more chapters for this story, then I will go back to _A Marine's Life for me_ after that I will alternate between stories. Also to avoid confusion, this story starts just before the first chapter _A Marine's Life for me _I will also explain some things that you may have been wondering. Like what happened to Aaron, how did Grantz survive, etc, etc. Also I apologize to the creators of Russell and Zen, I felt that I did a poor job of portraying them. I will try to do better. Anyway please review.


	3. Pirates Hunting Pirates

Pirates Hunting Pirates

"So, Zen, what were you doing back at that village?" Russell asked. He and Zen were lying in the bottom of the boat and were looking up at the sky, watching the clouds go by.

"I was gathering some supplies when I heard the commotion. When I got there, I saw that pirate threatening that kid so I intervened," Zen said as he sat up.

"Oh. If you don't mind me asking, why did you want to help the kid?" Russell asked.

"What's that supposed to mean? I can't help a kid for no reason?" Zen asked as he lay back down.

"It's just that you were ready to kill that guy, Patch," Russell said.

"Yeah so? One of his men was about to kill a kid, and he was going to kill _you_," Zen said.

"Yeah, but you were really mad. If it had been me in that situation I would have beat the crap out of him sure, but you wanted to kill him, why?" Russell asked.

Zen sighed and stayed quiet for a while. "Everyone is different. Some people go through different things, and sometimes those things change us," he said.

:"Wow that's deep. Depressing, but deep," Russell said.

Zen chuckled. "Ya know I think we're going to get along just fine,"

"Hey look! There's an island dead ahead!" Russell said excitedly.

Zen turned around and saw the island. It was still a good distance away, but they should be able to reach it before to long. "Well, what should we do?" he asked looking at Russell.

"We go there and get supplies and look for new crewmembers of course," Russell said.

"So, no pillaging or anything?" Zen asked.

"What? No of course not. I mean do you want to?" Russell asked.

"Eh, not really," Zen said.

"Good, I'd hate to have to throw you overboard, and finding a good First mate isn't easy," Russell said.

"How long did it take you to find me?" Zen asked.

"Well I was traveling for about a week, but, I wasn't exactly looking for anyone, I was just sailing around," Russell stated.

"So you were lost," Zen said.

"What? I was not lost. I happen to be a very capable navigator!" Russell said slightly offended.

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, really,"

"Then how come we're now going a way from the island," Zen said pointing out that they were drifting off course,"

"… We will never speak of this again," Russell said.

Once they had landed Russell jumped off began to walk into town.

"Hey! Where're you going Russ!" Zen called out.

"I'm going to go see if I can find out anything useful. Like, where to get a bigger ship and more crewmembers," Russell called back.

"Alright, I'll get some supplies. Let's meet back here again in about three hours okay?" Zen asked.

"Okay, see ya then!" Russell said and continued to walk into town.

Russell walked for about an hour taking in the sights and asking people if they knew any ship builders. He figured they would be more willing to answer that question than "would you like to join my pirate crew?" but, so far no one knew where he could get a ship.

While he was thinking of a way to look for potential crew members he was stopped by a young man. He had a dull blue t-shirt, black pants and shoes, a grey cloak, and black gloves. He had bluish grey eyes and tan skin, and his hair was brown and spiky.

"Excuse me sir?" he asked Russell. "Hove you seen these men?" he held out several bounty posters. Each one had a picture of a member of the Mauler Pirates.

"Hmm. No can't say that I've seen them. Why?" Russell asked.

"I'm a bounty hunter and I heard that they were somewhere near here," the man said.

"Well, if I see them I'll be sure to tell you," Russell said.

"Thanks," the man replied. He them walked off.

"Hey! What's your name?" Russell asked.

"Aaron," the man replied and disappeared into the crowd

A little while later Russell found himself sit on the beach staring out at the ocean as the sun slowly set.

"Man, I've been here all day and I haven't found out anything useful," Russell sighed. "And now that I think about it, I was supposed to meet up with Zen hours ago. Maybe we'll have better luck at the next island,"

"Better luck with what?" an old man asked as he sat down next to Russell.

"Huh? Oh me and my friend were looking for some crew members and maybe a bigger ship. But, no one knows where we can get a ship or wants t join my crew," Russell said.

"Well, not many people are too keen on joining up pirates," the old man said.

"Hey! How did you know I was pirate?" Russell asked.

"Hahaha, this towns seen plenty of your type. You're adventuress, restless, and eager to find something exciting. Most people can tell that just by looking at you. But, I can tell that you're also kind and willing to help out others," the old man said. "Which is why I'm going to help you,"

"How can you help me?" Russell asked. "Don't tell me you have a spare ship,"

"No, I don't. But, I know someone who can find you some crew members and a new ship," the old man said.

"Who!" Russell asked, barely containing his excitement.

"His name is Reinhart. He lives on an island to the south," the old man said as he stood up and brushed the sand off of his clothes. "I have a map in my shack," he pointed towards a small wooden house a little ways down the beach. "I'll go get it,"

"Thanks," Russell said. Before he could continue a loud boom echoed out across the water. Russell looked out towards the sound of the explosion. In the distance he saw a large ship coming to the island.

"It's those Mauler pirates again!" the old man growled. "There always causing trouble around here,"

"Mauler pirates," Russell said as he thought back to the bounty posters and Aaron. _What if that explosion was Aaron fighting them?_ True he didn't know him very well, but, something about him told Russell that he was a good man. "Go find that map; I'll take care of those pirates!" Russell said as he rushed down to the dock.

When he reached the dock he saw Zen waiting for him. "What part of 'We'll meet here in three hours' didn't you understand?" he asked jokingly. Hew stopped, however, when he saw that Russell, while he didn't let it show, seemed in a hurry.

"Zen, did you see a guy in a grey cloak come by?" Russell asked.

"Yeah, a little while ago. He took off in a hurry. Why?" Zen asked.

"No time, let's go!" Russell said as he jumped in the boat.

Zen understood that they were in a hurry and untied the rope that connected them to the dock. Once he was in the boat they set off towards the ship that Russell had seen earlier. Zen noticed that Russell was being unusually quiet and decided to see what was going on.

"Hey Russell, what's the problem?" he asked.

"That's a pirate ship up ahead. They've been causing trouble around here lately, a bounty hunter; the man you saw earlier was going after them. I want to make sure he's alright" Russell replied.

"A bounty hunter? Are you serious?" Zen asked. "You do realize that eventually we're going to have prices on our heads. That means that bounty hunters are going to come after _us._ So, the fewer of them there are the easier it'll be for us,"

"I don't know. I've got a feeling this guy is not just in it for the money," Russell said as they drew closer to the ship.

"How long have you known this guy anyway?" Zen asked.

"I talked to him for, I don't know, 20 or 30 seconds," Russell said thinking back to when he met Aaron.

"You have got to be kidding me," Zen muttered.

When they reached the ship Zen tied the rope to one of his bones and stuck it in the side of the ship, and then he and Russell climbed aboard. When they reached the deck the saw the full crew waiting for them, the captain, a young woman with a long red coat and blond hair, turned to face them.

"More bounty hunters?" she asked, sounding bored. "Oh well, we'll just take care of you like the last one,"

"Where's Aaron?" Russell asked.

"Hmm? That other bounty hunter? We blasted his little boat to pieces before he could even board us," she said smirking.

"Wow, are you gutless or what?" Zen asked. "You too afraid to take on one little bounty hunter? Heh and you call yourself pirates,"

This angered the crew and they drew their weapons and began to advance towards them, while the captain went up to the helm to get a better view.

"So Zen," Russell said. "Do you want the ones on the right, or the ones on the left?"

"Why don't I take the whole crew on and you can take down the captain," Zen said.

"I like that idea. You sure you don't want any help though?" Russell asked.

"Relax Russ. If I can't handle these guys, then I don't deserve to be a pirate," Zen said.

"Alright then, have fun!" Russell said as he jumped over the pirates and ran towards the steps that led to the helm.

Before the crew could fallow him Zen cut off their route by blocking the steps. "Alright," he said. "Who wants to go first?"

The pirates grinned and began to slowly advance towards Zen, but they stopped grinn9ing and backed away when he transformed his arms into two bone swords. "Come on, I thought you guys were tough pirates," Zen taunted as he jumped towards the crew.

Meanwhile Russell was confronting the captain. "You're going to regret blowing up Aaron's ship," he said as he dropped into a fighting stance.

"What's your problem? I figured that you'd be happy, after all if you manage to bring me in you won't have to split the bounty with him,"

"Heh. I'm not a bounty hunter. I'm a pirate!" Russell said as he charged forward and punched the women, knocking her back into the railing.

She got up and drew a sword from her belt. "If you're a pirate, then why are you fighting me? And why do you care what happens to some bounty hunter?"

"Because, unlike you I actually have honor, I wouldn't blast a bounty hunter's ship just because I was too scared to fight him. I would welcome the challenge and at least give him a chance!" Russell said as he charged at her again.

She swung her sword at him but, he ducked and kicked her legs out from underneath her. She recovered quickly and lunged at Russell, but he sidestepped the attack and delivered another punch to her face. Then he kicked the sword out of her hand and hit her on the head with the hilt.

The blow knocked her unconscious and she collapsed to the floor. "She wasn't even good for me to use my scythe on," Russell said. "Hm. Maybe I should check on Zen,"

Russell walked over to the steps and saw that Zen had taken care of crew with little effort. "Was the captain as weak as these guys?" Zen asked disappointed.

"Yeah, no wonder they had to shoot Aaron's ship. They probably wouldn't last two seconds against him," Russell said.

"How do you know?" Zen asked. "You said yourself, you barely knew the guy,"

"Yeah, but you could just tell, the way he moved told you he was a fighter and a good one at that," Russell said. He sighed as he looked out at the sea.

"Hey, look on the Brightside, we got a bigger ship," Zen said trying to cheer up his captain.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Russell said. However, as soon as he said this a cannon ball landed next to the ship. Russell and Zen looked and saw that they had drifted close to the island and the marine base stationed there began to open fire at them.

"Didn't these idiots drop the anchor!" Zen yelled as he ran back to their smaller ship.

"Where are you going? We just got this ship!" Russell yelled.

"We're to big a target! Now come on, or else we'll be blown to bits!" Zen yelled.

Russell ran over to the edge of the ship and jumped down into their boat and, after cutting the rope that connected them to the ship, they set off back towards the island, being careful to avoid the base's cannon fire.

When they reached the island they docked on the beach and got out. "That was _way_ to close," Zen said.

"Yeah," Russell sighed. He had rally wanted a bigger ship. "Oh well! That ship was a coward's ship. It wasn't good enough for us!" he said cheering up.

"Hahaha! That's the captain I know!" Zen said laughing.

While they were talking the old man that Russell had met earlier came up to them. "There you are! I found the map I told you about. Here it is," he said as he handed them the map.

"Thanks, old man. I owe you one," Russell said as he took the map.

There were some shouts and in the distance a squad of marines could be seen coming towards the beach. "You two had better get going. And good luck to you two on your journey!" the old man said.

Russell and Zen pushed the boat back in the water and set sail to the new island and to Reinhart.

AN: I know this is late again and I apologize, but I wasn't been able to get into writing this chapter. I will update my other story, a Marine's Life For Me, hopefully soon.


	4. The Stranded Pirate

The Stranded Pirate

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece and the OCs belong to their creators.

"Hey Russell," Zen said. "How long until we reach the island with this Reinhart guy?"

"It'll be a few more days, why?" Russell asked. He was looking at the map the old man had given him and was wondering if Reinhart would be able to help them.

"Well, we're starting to run low on supplies, we should look for an island to stop at and re-supply," Zen replied.

"Didn't we just get supplies at the last island?" Russell asked, wondering how they could have gone through their food so fast.

"That was a couple of days ago, not to mention that some of the food we had started to spoil," Zen explained.

"I can't believe that you bought rotting food," Russell joked laughing at his only crew member.

"You're not pinning this on me! You should have brought some food that doesn't spoil so easily!" Zen said.

"Hey, relax. We're almost to another island. We can get supplies there and maybe look for a new crew member," Russell said.

"Yeah, it would be nice to have someone else around here," Zen agreed. "It's hard to be feared pirates if there are only two of you,"

_~A While Later~_

"Sooo, this is it," Russell said looking around.

"I guess so," Zen said, also looking around at their surroundings. The island was fairly small. It mostly consisted of a small village and a moderate sized forest. The two looked around the village for a bit before they found all of the supplies they needed. When they were down they decided to go to the bar to look for potential crew members. They sat down at the bar and ordered a few drinks.

"Ya know Zen, we need to get some money and soon," Russell said taking a sip of water. "If we don't, we won't have enough to pay Reinhart for his information let alone buy a ship,"

"We could always, you know 'borrow' one," Zen said putting emphasis on borrow.

"Yeah, I guess so. But, I'm no ship expert; I mean what kind do you think we need?" Russell asked.

"How should I know?" Zen asked. "What do I look like, a shipwright?"

Before they could continue their discussion, they noticed a group of men harassing a young woman. The woman had a light blue shirt, tan pants, and a plain white jacket. She had shoulder length blonde curly hair; she was also fairly tall and quite pretty. She seemed annoyed at the group pf men and finally told them to leave, however they didn't listen.

"Are you guys' deaf or just stupid?" Russell asked seriously.

Everyone in the bar stopped talking when they realized who he was talking to. One of the men looked at him angrily and asked. "What did you just say?"

"Oh, what do you know, you were right Russell, they are deaf. I guess I own you fifty beli," Zen said as he fished out the money.

"Who do you think you're talking to!" the first man yelled. His friends got up and drew their weapons.

"Keep your money Zen, it looks like they're idiots too," Russell said as they got up and ready to fight.

However, before the two groups could began, the woman was being harassed smacked the leader with a chair and knocked him out. "Man, that guy was annoying," she sighed. One of the man's lackeys swung his dagger at her, but she drew a rapier and blocked the attack before she disarmed him. Another lunged at her, but was stopped by Zen.

"This fight seems a little unfair don't you think?" Zen asked. It was then everyone realized that he was blocking the blade with his hand; the bone had come out and formed a protective coating over it.

Before anyone could react, Zen pushed the man back and punched him with his bone covered fist. Russell jumped forward and kicked another one. Soon, an all out brawl started between Russell, Zen, and the girl and the guys who were harassing her earlier. Before too long the men who had been bothering the girl were unconscious.

"Well, that was disappointing," Zen commented dryly.

"Yeah, I didn't even need to use my scythe," Russell said disappointedly.

"I don't know you guys but thanks," the girl said. "My name's Pearl, Pearl Fallsing,"

"No problem. We enjoy giving punks like that crash courses in manners," Zen said grinning. "The name's Zen by the way. And this here is Russell, he's my captain.

"Hmm, say Pearl," Russell said getting the girl's attention. "You're pretty good with that sword. Why don't you join our crew?"

"Crew?" Pearl asked tilting her head to one side.

"Yeah, we're pirates!" Russell said enthusiastically. "And we could really use some new members. So what do you say?"

"I don't know," Pearl said. _They seem nice, but what if they turn out to be like my last crew?_

"Is something the matter?" Zen asked. _Maybe we shouldn't have mentioned we were pirates._

"Uh, not really, it's just that I was part of a pirate crew before and well… let's just say that it didn't end well," Pearl said thinking about how they had acted which led to her leaving and being stuck here when she realized she had no money.

"Oh, so you have experience on a pirate crew," Russell said grinning. Now she _really_ had to join.

"Yeah, I worked on several pirate ships before. I was the doctor, or medic, or whatever you call it," Pearl said.

"Perfect!" Russell said excitedly. "We could use a doctor! Hmm, we'll also need a cook, and maybe another navigator," Russell began to list all of the occupations that needed to be filled.

"Another navigator? You can't really call yourself the navigator," Zen said.

"Hey! I'm good at navigating. It's just that I get busy sometimes so we might need someone who can spend all of their time doing that," Russell said defensively.

"So, if Russell's the captain, what does that make you Zen?" Pearl asked.

"I'm the first mate," Zen said grinning.

"More like the guy I go to when I need someone beat up," Russell said jokingly.

"Sure, sure, laugh it up," Zen said. "But, if the crew ever gets out of control don't come crawling to me,"

"You do realize that there are only two of you, right?" Pearl asked.

"I'm talking about later. We're going to have the best crew that ever sailed the seas," Zen said.

"He's right," Russell agreed. "We're the next greatest pirates!"

_Hmm, the next greatest pirate eh? Maybe they are better than my last crew. _Pearl thought. "I'll tell you what, you help me with a problem I have and I'll join your crew," Pearl said.

"Really!" Russell said excitedly. "Okay, what do we need to do?"

"These guys," Pearl said gesturing to the unconscious men on ground. "Work for the mayor of this town. Only, he's less of mayor and more of a local bandit leader," Pearl explained. "The people here have been under his thumb for way to long, if you can help me get rid of him, I'll join you," _Here's the moment of truth, if they agree…_

Pearl didn't get to finish her thought when Russell asked. "Is that all? We'll take care of him, won't we Zen?"

"Sure, I could use a good work out," Zen said grinning. But, he suddenly turned serious. "Besides, if he thinks he can oppress all of these kids, er I mean, people. Then he's wrong,"

Pearl was surprised that they agreed and so soon. "Okay, then! Tomorrow, we'll take this village back!" Pearl said.

"Yeah!" Russell cheered. "Uh, quick question, where can we find a place to sleep?" he asked sheepishly.

"You guys can stay at my place for tonight. Come on follow me," Pearl said and led them out of the bar.

_~Meanwhile~_

The so called mayor of the village was sitting at his desk counting the money he had extorted form the villagers, when a man walked into his room. The man was young, probably in his early twenties. He stood around 5'11 and had flaming red hair and bright red eyes which stood out against his pale skin. He wore a bomber jacket with a fur collar and a white shirt, with black jeans and large tan boots. However, the two most noticeable traits about the man was the bag he had slung over his shoulder and the constant, insane like grin he wore.

"You must be Mr. Mahto. What can I blow up for you today?" the man asked.

"I take it you're Archy the Anarchist?" Mr. Mahto asked.

"That's me," Archy said. "Now, what's the job?"

"The job is simple. There is a pest, a former pirate named Pearl Fallsing, that I need… taken care of," Mr. Mahto said. "She lives in the woods not too far from here. Just get rid of her, I don't care how you do it as long as it gets done,"

Archy started to laugh, it sent chills down Mr. Mahto's back. He could tell his new employee was not exactly… mentally stable. He shrugged it however. It didn't matter what kind of person Archy was, as long as he got the job done.

"So, when can I start burning and blowing things up?" Archy asked eager to get to work.

"Right now," Mr. Mahto said grinning evilly.

_~At Pearl's House~_

"Well, here it is," Pearl said, showing them the cabin she was living in. "It's not much, but its home,"

"It looks nice," Russell said. "It seems peaceful here too,"

"Yeah, it's nice and quiet, no one to bother you or anything. It must be nice," Zen said.

"You really think so?" Pearl asked. "I think it's kind of boring. It's a nice place here and all but I want to an adventure, sail the seas fight marines, take treasure. You know pirate stuff,"

Russell and Zen relaxed after they heard her say she thought it was boring. "Whew, we thought you liked it here, so we didn't want to offend you," Russell said.

"Yeah, to be honest, if I just stayed here forever I think I'd go crazy. I need excitement and adventure," Zen said.

"Exactly!" Pearl said. "That's why I became a pirate in the first place. Well, at least it's why I'm still a pirate," Pearl said. She sounded kind of sad as she said that last part.

"So, why did you become a pirate?" Russell asked.

"Uhm, well, you see…" Before Pearl could think of an excuse a loud explosion drew they attention. "What was that!"

"It sounded like it came from the village!" Zen said. They all dashed off to see what was going on.

_So much for peace and quiet. _Russell thought as he raced ahead of his friends.

Back at the village everything was in flames. People were running and screaming. They gathered their family and ran towards the docks, hoping to board a vessel and escape the pyromaniac burning the village. All the while Archy was laughing like a mad man. However, Mr. Mahto and his bodyguards ran up to him.

"You idiot! I told you, Fallsing lives in the forest, not the village!" Mr. Mahto yelled.

"Yeah, but I don't feel like walking that far, it's much easier to just get her to come to me. Besides, how could I pass up the opportunity to burn so many buildings?" Archy said with a wicked gleam in his eyes.

"If you think you're getting paid you are dead wrong. Now stop destroying the village this instant!" Mr. Mahto yelled.

Archy turned towards Mr. Mahto and glared at him, yet still grinning crazily. "I don't like it when people tell me what to do!" Archy yelled as he hurled what looked like a baseball towards Mr. Mahto and his men. It soon exploded and Mr. Mahto and his men went with it. "It was never about the money," Archy said to no one in particular. "It's about all of this glorious fire!" Archy began to laugh his psychotic laugh again.

AN: Well I've been gone a long time. I'm sorry, but between school work and other projects I've been working on, I haven't had much time. I will try to have the next one soon. Once again I am sorry, now please review and tell me how I did; if I portray someone wrong please tell me! Happy St. Patrick's Day!


	5. The Pirates vs Pyro

The Pirates vs. the Pyro

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. Pearl belongs Tesseraction to and Archy belongs to Nezumimaru.

Russell dashed through the forest, finally coming out at the village, which was in flames. He heard Zen and Pearl come out behind them and Pearl gasp at the sight.

"I-is this because of me?" Pearl asked. She seemed shaken by the thought that an entire village was burning because of her.

"No," Zen said, he voice deadly serious. "This is because of that Mahto guy,"

Pearl growled as she gripped her rapier. "Grrh, Mahto!" she yelled as she charged into the burning village.

"Well we better go after her," Russell said as he began to stretch. "We don't want her to have all the fun," He took off after Pearl, drawing his scythe as he went, Zen right behind him with his bone swords covering his arms.

_~One Piece~_

Pearl ran towards the center of the village looking around for any sight of Mahto or his men. Surprisingly she found nothing. However, she heard what sounded like insane laughter coming from nearby. She ran towards the sound and saw a man with red hair and a bomber jacket throwing explosives around.

"Hey! Who are you? Do you work for Mahto?" Pearl asked as she readied herself to fight.

"Mahto?" the man asked. "Oh you mean that annoying man who tried to tell me what I can and can't burn. Yes I did work for about an hour or so. Before I burnt him and his lackeys to cinders,"

"What!" Pearl gasped. "How can anyone be so heartless!"

"I'm not heartless, I just don't care who I kill as long as I get to burn things," the man replied.

"That's being heartless you idiot!" Pearl yelled as she charged at the man.

The man grinned and he threw a bottle full of oil at Pearl. She ducked and continued to charge at the lunatic when he threw a ball at her. Thinking it was a diversion Pearl swiped at it with her sword. The resulting explosion knocked her off her feet.

"What was that?" Pearl asked as she sat up.

"That was one of my special explosives. Oh, and to answer your earlier question, I'm Archy, more commonly known as…" Archy began before he was interrupted by two new arrivals.

"Archy the Anarchist," Zen said as he and Russell entered the area. "One of the most dangerous and insane criminals in all of the West Blue,"

"Well, I tried out for the most wanted in the Grand Line, but they said I needed a bit more practice before they let me join," Archy said grinning.

"You think this is a joke you freak!" Zen yelled as he charged at Archy.

Archy laughed and began to throw more explosives at Zen, but Zen was quick and he was able to dodge them. Just as Zen got close enough to strike him, Archy pulled out a small rectangular box and threw it at Zen's face. It exploded in a bright flash and disoriented him long enough for Archy to punch him and knock him down. Archy grinned and he aimed what looked like a pistol, but with a line going into his pack. Archy pulled the trigger and blast of red hot flames shot out.

Archy laughed, but stopped when he felt a stabbing pain in his shoulder. He turned around and saw Pearl with her rapier stained with blood. "Do you want to wind up like your friend?" Archy asked laughing.

Pearl just smirked and pointed behind him. Archy turned around and saw Russell standing over Zen. He had leaped between the fire and his first mate at the last second and had spun his scythe around quickly to block the flames. But to the three friends' surprise, Archy didn't seemed upset by this. In fact he started to laugh! "Chahahahah, this is fun! I get to burn three strong fighters and a village!" he said.

"THAT'S IT!" Pearl shouted. "I'M GOING TO SHUT YOU UP!" she charged at Archy and swung her rapier at him.

Archy dodged and threw another box at Pearl, this one exploded in a storm of nails. Pearl tried to jump back, but at the distance Pearl was at, she couldn't hope to dodge them all. She collapsed with several nails in her stomach.

Archy grinned, but he was caught off guard by Russell swinging his scythe across his face cutting him. Before Archy could counter Zen threw several of his finger bones at him stabbing him in the arm. He turned to face the two pirates and aimed his flamethrower at them. When the flames shot out Russell and Zen split up. Russell charged at Archy, his scythe held out to the side, while Zen went to check on Pearl.

Russell continued to dodge Archy's flames and was finally able to get close enough to strike. He swung his scythe horizontally and followed up with a diagonal strike. Both connected, but Archy was able to move back far enough that they only scratched him. Russell swung his scythe down in the ground and, grabbing the shaft with his hands, he lifted himself up and spun around kicking Archy back, before he pulled his scythe out of the ground and continued his assault.

Meanwhile Zen had just reached Pearl who was sitting up slowly. "Easy Pearl, stay still, I'll try to patch you up," Zen said as he knelt next to her.

"Gee thanks Zen, but I think I'll make it," Pearl said as she stood up. "I can recover from just about anything," Pearl winced as she stood up.

"A devil fruit," Zen said surprised.

"Yes, but I might need a few more minutes to fully recover," Pearl said.

"Alright, you stay here I'll back up Russell," Zen said as he went to go help his captain, but he was intercepted by Mahto's thugs.

"Hey, you must be the ones who killed are boss," one of them said. "How are we going to get paid now?"

"Okay first of all we didn't kill you boss, second of all that is not my problem, and third of all you're in my way!" Zen yelled as he shifted his hands into large bony claws and swatted the men away.

More came at him, however, and he couldn't find a way past them. _Dang,_ Zen mentally growled. _These guys are nothing, but there are a lot of them .I hope Russell can keep that nut job busy for a while. _Zen continued to knock the thugs around, but he was able to glance over to see how Russell was doing.

Russell was chasing Archy, who in return was throwing everything he could find in his bag. Russell ducked under a flaming tennis ball and jumped at the pyromaniac, but Archy was able to side step and continue running, all the while laughing that crazy laugh of his. _Come on! Does he ever run out of explosives! _Russell thought. _And what's with his laugh? Does he ever stop?_ While Russell was chasing him, Archy suddenly turned around a dumped the contents of a bottle on the ground in front of him and dropped a match on top of it, making it erupt in a wall of flames. _Crap! _Russell though. He was going to fast to stop, so instead he pushed himself even harder and dashed through the flames.

Russell hit the ground and rolled along the ground, putting out the flames. When he stopped, he saw Archy holding his flamethrower at him and grinning. "It's game over for you! Chahahahaha," Archy laughed, but before he could pull the trigger, a scalpel buried it's self in his leg. "OW! That hurt!" Archy turned to see who had thrown the surgical knife.

Pearl was standing up, another knife in one hand and her rapier in the other. "You burned down this village. I'm going to get you for that!" Pearl threw her other knife and ran straight towards Archy.

Archy turned to face her and pulled the trigger on his flamethrower, but Pearl didn't stop. Russell leaped to his feet and punched Archy knocking him back and forcing him to let go of his flamethrower. Before Archy could recover from the blow Pearl had reached him and began to attack with her rapier. Her attacks kept Archy on the defense and he couldn't even reach into his bag for a weapon. Pearl continued to slash at him, always a hairsbreadth from hitting the psychotic mercenary. Finally she lunged at him and managed to stab his side.

"Chahaha," Archy laughed holding his side. "Well, this has been fun, but I've got to go. Bye-bye," With that Archy threw a smoke bomb at his feet. The smoke blinded Pearl and Russell and by the time it cleared, Archy was gone.

"Where'd that fire loving freak go?" Pearl asked looking around for Archy.

"He probably ran towards the docks," Zen, who had finished dealing with the thugs, said.

"Well, come on! Let's go get him!" Pearl said. She tried to run towards the docks, but was stopped by Russell putting his hand on her shoulder. "Hey! What's the big idea Russell!"

"He's not worth it," Russell said shaking his head.

"Not worth it! He burned down this village. He'll probably do it again!" Pearl said.

"Your right, but right now we need to check on the villagers and make sure everyone's okay. I say you recover fro, those injuries, can you heal others too?" Russell asked.

Pearl nodded and they split up to find the villagers who fled when Archy attacked.

_~Later~_

"Everyone's okay," Pearl said as she finished healing some burns on an elderly man. "It's a miracle no one was killed,"

"Thanks to you and devil fruit," Zen said.

Pearl shook her head. "If it wasn't for you guys, I might not have been able to help some of these people in time," she let out a sigh and hung her head. "I just wish we could've caught Archy,"

"Don't worry about it," Russell said. "Buildings can be re-built. Lives can't, we kept the people safe and that's what matters,"

Pearl grinned. "Your right, thanks again,"

"No problem," Russell said. "Come on Zen we got to go," Russell began to walk to the docks. Zen gave a puzzled look, but followed after him.

"Hey, what about Pearl? Isn't she coming with us?" Zen asked.

"Yeah, I thought you wanted me to join you crew," Pearl said wondering what made him change his mind.

"You said you'd come with us if we helped you stop Mahto right?" Russell asked and Pearl nodded yes. "Well, Archy did that for us, so the deal's off. Unless of course you still want to come,"

"Of course I do!" Pearl said smiling. "Let me grab some things from my house first," Pearl ran off to her house.

"Well, I better go help her," Zen said walking off towards Pearl's house. "I'd like to get going soon."

"Good, idea. Let's go give our new crew member a hand," Russell said.

_~Later~_

As they walked out of the woods, Russell grinned and looked at Zen. "Hey Zen, why don't we race to the docks?" Russell asked.

"That is not only childish, it's also pointless," Zen said, but he was grinning too.

"What if I ordered you?" Russell said his grin growing wider.

"Then I'd just have to beat you," Zen said grinning even more.

"You can still beat Russell, but I'm beating you both!" Pearl yelled from further up the path.

"Hey, you cheated!" Zen yelled racing after her.

"Hey, stop you guys. I'm supposed to win!" Russell yelled.

"Then you'd better run!" Pearl and Zen called out.

AN: Not very long, but I felt I should update. The next chapter will focus on the group finding Reinhart and I hope to have it up in a week or so. Please give me some feedback and tell me if I got your character wrong.


	6. The Man Who Knows All

The Man Who Knows All.

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece.

The small boat holding the three man crew was drifting lazily on the waves as they drew closer to their destination. Each of the crew was thinking about the meeting with Reinhart and how it would go. Russell was excited about getting a better ship and couldn't wait to meet the man who would help them.

Zen was cautious, thinking that Rinehart might turn them over to the marines. Which was all right with him, all that meant was that he got the chance to teach some marines a valuable lesson: Don't mess with them unless you're ready for a fight.

As for Pearl, her thoughts were more practical and revolved around one question. "Hey guys," Pearl said gaining the attention of her two daydreaming crewmates. "How are we going to pay for this information?"

"Pay? What are you talking about?" Zen asked, puzzled.

Pearl sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Reinhart is an information seller. You know someone who collects and sells information. We'll have to pay him for the information,"

"Why don't we just get him to tell us where to get the ship and leave? We are _pirates_ after all, we don't need to pay for anything," Zen said.

"And what if he doesn't tell us until we pay him?" Pearl said. "Besides, he most likely has connections to marines, bounty hunters, and mercenaries. He could make life very difficult for us,"

"Well, I for one enjoy a challenge," Zen said. "Besides they're going to come after us eventually, we might as well get an early start,"

"I think we should pay him, if the information's good," Russell said. "After all, he could be a big help if we ever need to know something,"

"Oh, alright," Zen said seeing he was out voted. "Too bad, I was looking forward to beating some marines,"

"Hey, I see the island!" Russell said standing up and rocking their small boat. "This is it guys! Are real adventure, starts here!"

~_One Piece~_

Russell jumped on to the dock and looked around. The city was very large, everywhere he looked people moved around, buying and selling goods, going to jobs, or loading and unloading ships. The place was very lively; _it would be so easy to get lost here_. Russell thought. "You guys go find a bar or something and relax, I'm going to find Reinhart and see about getting a new ship," Russell said.

"Alright, see you later," Zen said. "Ok Pearl lets go see what kind of trouble we can get find," With that, Zen and Pearl started walking to the nearest bar.

_~Meanwhile~_

Russell looked around at all of the buildings. "Hmm. Which one of these is Reinhart's?" All of the buildings looked the same, large and with big windows to display their wares. Anyone of them could belong to Reinhart. Russell sighed, he started off in a random direction, but he was stopped by a cloaked figure.

"Can I help you?" the figure, a male Russell guessed by the sound of the voice, asked.

"Uh yeah, I was wondering, where can I find Reinhart?" Russell asked.

The figure chuckled and walked towards an alley that Russell had not noticed. "It's right down here," the figure said and led him to a small run down shack. The strange person opened the door and walked inside. Russell followed him and peered into the gloom. The room was pitch black, until the man lit a lamp and sat down at a table facing Russell. "Now then, what can I do for you?"

"Wait, _you're_ Reinhart?" Russell asked, surprised. He tried to get a better look at him, but his face was covered by the hood of the cloak and a veil was sown into the lower half, leaving only his and above exposed. He also wore a pair of small rectangular glasses.

Russell also looked around the shack, it was small and cramped, although that was probably because of the many bookshelves and boxes, overflowing with papers and charts. The room was also very dark, there were a few windows, but they were all covered with thick black curtains blocking all sunlight. Although the shack was in poor condition, everything seemed organized and in place, nothing looked like in didn't belong.

Reinhart chuckled and nodded his head. "Yes, yes I am. Now what can I do for you, Russell?"

"Hey, how did you know my name, I never told you," Russell said confused.

"I make it a habit to know what ever goes on in the town that I stay in," Reinhart explains. "Besides, you've also began to make reputation. You defeated Patch and his crew, took down the Mauler pirates, and went up against Archy the Anarchist and survived. That's quite impressive,"

"Okay, it is officially creepy how much stuff you know," Russell said. "We fought Archy less than a week ago!"

"Yes and I only just found out about. I said I like to know what goes on around the towns that I live in, but it's my job to know everything else," Reinhart explained. "But, I don't know what you want to know. So please, enlighten me,"

"Well, I guess you know I'm a pirate, I'm looking for a bigger ship and possibly some crew members," Russell said.

Reinhart closed his eyes and was silent for a moment before he spoke up. "Hmm, crew members are easily taken care of, but a ship. Now, that is something challenging, since I can assume you came to me because of a lack of funds to purchase your own ship, you will need to steal one,"

"Yeah, that sounds fine with me," Russell said nodding. "Just point us in the direction of the nearest ship we can steal,"

"I'm afraid it won't be that easy. Most ships here are owned by marines, and the really good ones, which you'll need, are under heavy guard," Reinhart said.

"That doesn't matter," Russell said grinning "That'll just give us an opportunity to see how good we really are,"

_Hmm, I wonder... could they really help me? _Reinhart thought. "I'll tell you what, if you do me a favor, I'll not only get you the best ship around, I'll give you information on potential crew members, all free of charge," Reinhart said.

"Wow! Really?" Russell asked. "Wait, what is it you want us to do?"

"All I want you to do is steal a particular ship," Reinhart answered.

"So, you want me to steal a ship? Aren't we going to do that anyway?" Russell asked.

"Yes, but as I said, I want you to steal a particular ship. Don't worry it is a very fine vessel, in fact it's the best ship in all of the West Blue," Reinhart assured him.

"But, why do you want us to steal that ship?" Russell asked. It didn't make since to him; Reinhart was giving him everything he wanted, more in fact if the ship was really that good, all for free.

Reinhart sighed and turned to one of the curtain covered windows. "That ship is a new marine ship. It was just finished today, and it is too commanded by Captain Jessica DeMark. She is a ruthless and cutthroat captain who will kill her own men for failure. The marines don't do anything however, because she gets results, that and the DeMark family have very powerful connections. If she gets a hold of that ship, I don't want to think what she could do with it," Reinhart said.

Russell was silent, it was clear the way that Reinhart spoke that he despised this marine captain, probably the whole DeMark family judging from the way he talked about them. If this, Jessica DeMark was really that bad, then he had to take the ship. "Alright Reinhart you've got a deal!"

Reinhart sighed in relief. "Thank you. I will forever be in your debt. Now then, I will help you plan the heist. Let's see, I know I have a map of the shipyard somewhere," Reinhart said as he began to shift through a box of maps.

_~Meanwhile~_

"So do you think Reinhart will help us?" Pearl asked as she sipped her drink. She and Zen had found a bar down by the docks and sat down to wait for their captain to finish his business.

"How should I know?" Zen asked as he drained the rest of his drink. "As long as we pay him, I don't think he'll double-cross us. But, still we shouldn't be too relaxed,"

"Speaking of which, how are we going to pay him. We don't have a whole lot of beli," Pearl pointed out.

Before they could discuss their financial problems further, several men burst into the bar, everyone turned to face them. There were five of them, all of them were scarred and displaying their weapons, trying to intimidate the patrons at the bar. "Alright! We're the Skull Pirates! If you don't one to die you're going to give us all the grog and beli you've got," one of the pirates said. They went around from table to table taking money and alcohol from everyone. No one put up a fight, no one until they reached Zen and Pearl's table that is.

"I'll take that," the pirate who announced their arrival said as he grabbed Pearl's drink. Zen's hand latched on to the pirates arm.

"My friend was drinking that. I suggest you let go," Zen said, he was smiling at the pirate but the look in his eyes told him that he was serious.

"Wha, let go of me you idiot," the pirate yelled angrily. All of the other pirates noticed this and began to walk over to them.

Zen noticed this and decided to act quickly. "Okay, but only because you asked nicely," Zen said. He pulled and twisted the arm and the bone snapped, the man dropped the drink and fell to the ground on his knees clutching his arm, until Zen kicked his chin, knocking him unconscious. "Alright, who's next?"

The pirates were clearly shaken; they hadn't expected anyone to put up a fight let alone take of them down like they were nothing. Their fear quickly turned to anger and they charged at Zen drawing their swords. One was quicker than the others and reached Zen first, but before he could even swing his sword Pearl slashed her rapier across his chest and he collapsed.

"Need a hand?" Pearl asked as she blocked one of the pirate's strikes.

"Not really, but if you want to join in, I won't stop you," Zen replied. He ducked under a wild sword swing and grabbed the owners arm before he flipped him over his shoulder. He jumped back from another strike just as Pearl disarmed her opponent. "Hey Pearl, switch ya," Zen said as he jumped over to the unarmed man. He kicked him in the stomach and smashed a chair over his head. He turned to see Pearl knock her opponent's sword away and stab his shoulder. The man grabbed his shoulder to stop the bleeding and pearl punched him in the face knocking him down.

"Is it over already?" She asked sounding somewhat disappointed.

"I'm afraid so," Zen said. "Sorry about the mess he said to the bartender.

"Don't worry about it; I'm just glad you stopped them. I knew they were trouble when I saw them pull into port," the bartender said.

"You said you saw them come into port?" Zen asked.

"Yeah I did, why?" the man asked.

"You think you could point me to their ship?" Zen asked, a plan forming in his head.

"I could, it's the one at the far end of the dock. It has a pretty standard flag, just a skull and bones. Heh, no originality at all," the bartender said.

"Thanks," Zen said he turned to the door and walked out, Pearl following him.

"What are you planning Zen?" Pearl asked.

"Well, we need money right?" Zen asked. "Why don't we go see if we can 'borrow' some from those guys's ship?"

Pearl grinned as they walked down to the docks. "I like that idea. But, what's the plan?" she asked.

"Plan? I was just thinking we go in there and beat everyone up," Zen said.

Pearl sighed and shook her head. "I was kind of hoping for something a little more thought out," she said. "Oh well, I guess there's no need to over complicate things. Let's go!" she took off running with Zen right behind her.

_~Meanwhile~_

Reinhart and Russell were still studying the maps and other pieces of information that Reinhart had gathered. However, they were faced with several complications. "…no that won't work," Reinhart sighed.

"There must be something we can do," Russell said looking at the map again. The shipyard where their target was stored could only be accessed by a small inlet that led into a large cave. Inside the cave were rows and rows of cannons on both sides of the river that spilt the cave in two. There were also hiding spots for sharpshooters and a large gate that led to the back half of the cave. To control the gate, two people would need to simultaneously use the controls on the towers on either side of the gate. And therein was the problem. Russell's crew consisted of only three people that meant that one would have to steer the ship while the other two controlled the gate. However, the person steering the ship would still be in danger of cannons and marines behind the gate.

"It's useless. I'm sorry, you can to me for information and it's completely useless," Reinhart said sighing.

"Hey, it's not your fault. Besides it not useless, this information is a big help to us," Russell said reassuring him.

"But, it can't help it's impossible to do this with a three man crew," Reinhart said shaking his head.

"Hey listen up, nothing is impossible," Russell said. "And if we need more people, why don't you join my crew?"

"W-what do you say?" Reinhart asked. For the first time in a long time, he was stunned.

"You heard me, why don't you join my crew? We could use someone with your skills, what do you say?" Russell asked.

"Thank you," Reinhart said. "But, I'm afraid I'll have to decline. You see I have my own goals that I need to take care of,"

"Well that's no problem. If any of crewmates need to do something then they can do it, with all of the rest of us," Russell said.

"Like I said, thank you, but this is something I need to do by myself," Reinhart said.

"Oh, okay," Russell said disappointed.

Reinhart noticed this and spoke up. "However, if you don't mind waiting once I finish what I need to do, I' would like to join you,"

"Alright!" Russell yelled. "I hope you're quick, because if I'm going to have the greatest crew we'll need someone will a lot of information and know-how,"

Reinhart grinned and he suddenly remembered something. "Wait, I think I know someone who can help you," he picked up a file on the crew who built the ship and pulled out a sheet of paper, on it was written Sarah Alcott. "There, she'll help you,"

"Huh, why would someone who built the ship help us steal it?" Russell asked.

"Well for one, she doesn't like marines, she also wants to get away from her brother and this would be a perfect opportunity, she also doesn't want one her creations to be turned into a killer war machine. Besides she's the best shipwright around, she'll be very helpful to you on your journey," Reinhart explained.

"Alright then. Thanks for everything Reinhart, we'll take that ship and come back for the papers on those potential crewmates," Russell standing and stretching.

"I look forward to seeing you again Russell," Reinhart said shaking his hand.

"And I look forward to having you on my crew," Russell said grinning. "Well, I better go find Zen and Pearl, who knows what kind of trouble they've gotten into,"

_~The Trouble that Zen and Pearl are into~_

The captain of the Skull Pirates was relatively new, he figured that the only threat he would face were marines and he knew more than a few could be paid off. However, he had neglected the most dangerous threat a pirate could face: rival pirates. When he returned to his ship he found his men unconscious and strewn about the deck with a bored looking man shooting… bones form his fingers at the mast? The captain was angry, but seeing someone repeatedly throw bones from their fingers can be very intimidating. Finally the man noticed him and grinned.

"It's about time, let me guess, you're the big bad captain that these wimps kept talking about," Zen said.

"How could you defeat all of my men by yourself!" the captain yelled.

"Oh I didn't do it by myself," Zen said. The captain relaxed slightly, at least his men hadn't lost to one guy. "Pearl helped me take down," now the captain was worried again. Two people had beaten all of his men and now he was alone with one of them.

"W-what do you want?" he managed to ask.

"Oh just your treasure," Zen assured him.

"Well you can't have it!" the captain yelled. He would never give up his treasure.

"It's a little late to stop us," a voice from behind him said. He turned around to see Pearl with a large sack over her shoulder. "This is the last of it, Zen"

"Grr, I cut you in half!" the captain drew his sword and lunged at Pearl, who was intimidated in the slightest. The captain's blade was blocked by Zen's own bone sword.

"I do hope you'll put up more of a fight than your men," Zen said as he pushed back against the sword. "Otherwise, it just won't be fun,"

_~Meanwhile~_

"Commander Washer, we've arrived at our destination, sir!" a marine informed his commander. The man was Commander James T. Washer, he was a tall and scrawny man, he was about 6'5 and weighed about 155.5 lbs. he wore a plane black wife-beater t-shirt with a gray trench coat and grey jeans and running shoes. The shirt and coat were neat while the pants and shoes were a mess. He also had short brown hair with sideburns and a cowlick that curved upwards above his right eye. His brown eyes held a bored expression and he had a toothpick in his mouth.

"Alright," he sighed. "Why they picked me to guard some ship I'll never know. It sounds so _boring_,"

"Who knows sir, maybe someone will try to steal it," one of his men said trying to cheer him up.

"Yeah, maybe," Washer said grinning slightly. "I just hope, their good enough to take on a Fleet Commander,"

AN: I hope everyone has enjoyed this chapter. This is one of longest ones so I hope it was good. Please tell me what you think.


	7. The Hammer Handed Shipwright

The Hammer Handed Shipwright

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. All OCs belong to their creators.

Russell was excited, not only was he getting a ship, he was also getting someone who could fix it. "Ha, that's two birds with one stone," he said, happily. "I can't wait to tell Zen and Pearl! Come to think of it where are they?"

His question was answered when he saw both his crewmates laughing and walking down the street. Russell waved to them and ran over to them. "Where were you guys? And why are you so happy?" he asked.

"Hahaha, we just got done 'educating' some wannabe pirates," Zen said. "They weren't very good at fighting, but they did have a lot of treasure on them,"

"What about you, Russell?" Pearl asked. "Did you have any luck with Reinhart?"

"As a matter of fact, I did," Russell said grinning. "Not only did we work out a plan to steal a ship, we've also got a new crew member,"

"Well, you've been busy," Zen said. "So who's going to join us? And what's this plan of yours?" he asked.

Russell told both of them the plan that he and Reinhart had worked out. He told them about the secret shipyard, the shipwright who would help them, and how they would have to sneak past numerous guards and defenses to reach the ship. When he finished, Zen was grinning and Pearl seemed exciting.

"This is great! Our first big heist! I can't wait to get started," Pearl said.

"Ha, finally a challenge," Zen said smirking. "I'm going to enjoy making these marines look like idiots. So where do we find this Alcott person?"

Russell was about to answer when they heard a woman yell. "HANDS OFF YOU PERVERT!" a man was suddenly thrown through a wall of a nearby tavern, followed by several others. Russell and the others rushed in to see what was happening. They saw a woman throttling a drunken man and several unconscious men around her. The woman was young, about nineteen years old, she was also very beautiful. She had a curvy body, blonde curly hair, and blue eyes. Her tan skin was nearly flawless, only a few scars here and there on her arms.

"Settle down Sarah," the bartender said. "I don't want your brother questioning me about why you killed one of my patrons,"

"Fine," Sarah huffed and dropped the man. She turned around and sat down at a table in a corner. Russell looked over at her and walked towards her table, Pearl and Zen following him.

"Excuse me; you wouldn't happen to be Sarah Alcott, would you?" Russell asked.

"What if I am?" She asked rudely.

"My name's Russell," he began, ignoring her tone. "I'm a pirate and I could use a good shipwright. I know you might not want to betray the marines, but…" Russell was cut off by Sarah before he could finish.

"You've got a deal," she said.

"Er, come again?" Russell asked confused. He had expected her to argue and reluctantly come along, if at all. _I guess Reinhart was right; she really wants to get away from her life here._

"I said you've got a deal. Are you deaf?' she asked, then she smirked. "Or maybe you were transfixed by my beauty,"

"I'd like to 'transfix' her with a bone sword," Zen muttered, annoyed by her tone.

"Zen!" Pearl said. "We don't even know her!"

Sarah looked over at Pearl for a second before asking "Are you the only girl on the crew so far?"

"Yes, I am," Pearl said smiling at her new crewmate. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, I was just worried that, by some miracle, there might be someone more beautiful than me on the crew. Thankfully you put those fears to rest," Sarah said.

"…WHAT THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN!" Pearl yelled.

"Now, now Pearl, we don't know her yet," Zen said tauntingly.

"Settle down you two, that's an order," Russell said. "Now, Sarah I was wondering why you'd be so eager to join pirates, especially since you don't know our motives,"

"I want to get away from everything. The marines, my stupid brother, everything," Sarah explained. "And I thank you guys can help me. Besides if you do something I don't like, I'll just take over,"

"What makes you thank you could take down the three of us?" Zen asked. "Two of us have Devil Fruit powers and we all have more combat experience than a shipwright,"

Sarah grinned and stood up. She walked up to a wall and pinched it, the wall crumbled away and a large gaping hole was left. Russell and the others were surprised that she was that strong, while the bartender just shook his head and sighed. "That wasn't even my full strength," Sarah said smirking.

"Okay, she's in," Zen said.

As Sarah sat down, Russell pulled out some papers he got from Reinhart. "Okay, Sarah since you're on our crew now, you'll help us with our first heist: Stealing the new marine ship from their secret shipyard,"

"You mean the one I just built?" Sarah asked smirking. "Great, the last thing I want is for that DeMark woman to take my ship and turn into a weapon of mass destruction. So what's the plan?"

Russell spread out the papers and a map of the shipyard. "Okay, so I take it you're familiar with the shipyard's layout Sarah but Zen and Pearl don't know about it yet, so I'll explain things," Russell said. "First of all, we need to take our smaller boat and sail around the island. There's a small river that leads into the cave where the shipyard is, that's our way in. there are defenses set up on both sides of the river, sharpshooters and cannons all the way up and all the way down," Russell said.

"What's this? Pearl asked, pointing to the wall that separated the entrance from the actual shipyard.

"That is our first big problem," Russell said. "We need to simultaneously press the switches in both towers to raise the wall, Zen, Pearl that's were you come in. Zen will take the right side of the river and Pearl will take the left side. I need you to take out as many cannons and sharpshooters as you can on your way to the wall, I will distract the marines by burning their ammo depot here," he said pointing to a small building to the far right of the cave. "That should also draw the marines stationed in the barracks down here, so we won't have to worry about them later,"

"After that, I'll continue down the right side and take out the remaining defenses, then I'll cross over to the left side and take down those defenses," Russell explained.

"What about me?" Sarah asked. "I will be the most valuable member in this mission, after all,"

Zen and Pearl growled, but Russell calmed them down. "Actually, she is right. Since she is allowed there, she'll be the one who'll actually steal the ship and sail it down to the wall, she'll throw a lantern up over the wall so we know when she's in position onboard the ship, that'll be our cue to go in. Once she's through you guys will close the wall and join Sarah on the ship and sail out. If anything goes wrong in there Sarah, find a cannon and set it off, we'll rush our jobs and I'll meet up with you as soon as I can,"

"What about you, Russell?" Zen asked.

"I'll take our smaller boat and escape with it and meet up with you guys," Russell said.

"I don't know if I like that, maybe I should stay with. If you get surrounded you'll need back up," Zen said.

"Thanks Zen, but I'll be able to handle myself. Besides, Sarah will need you and Pearl to man the cannons to take out any defenses we may have missed. Rinehart warned me that the sharpshooters like to hide in old ruins and rock formations in the cave," Russell explained.

"But, Russell," Zen began before he was cut off.

"Don't worry about me Zen, if I can't handle a couple of marines then how can I be a famous pirate?" Russell jokingly asked. "Okay, let's get everything ready, we'll start tonight,"

Everyone stood up from the table and stretched. Pearl went to talk to the bartender about where they could find a room to rest up and Sarah went off saying she would meet them all later. As Zen began to walk out the door Russell stopped him. "Hey Zen, you got a sec?" Russell asked.

"Sure what is it Russell?" Zen asked as he turned around to face him.

"Well, I was just making sure you were okay with the plan," Russell said.

"Yeah, I understand it," Zen said.

"No, I mean you seemed to have some issues with the plan," Russell said as he looked at Zen. "Is everything alright? I haven't seen you so worked up since we met,"

Zen sighed before answering. "Listen; there are two things I hate: People who mess with kids and marines. And no I don't want to talk about; I've just got a personal vendetta against them,"

"Alright, I won't ask questions if it's going to make you uncomfortable, but I want you to relax. I don't want your vendetta to put the rest of the crew in danger," Russell said.

Zen grinned to reassure his captain. "Oh, come on Russell. You haven't known me long enough to know if I'll do something stupid,"

"True, but I think I can make a good guess," Russell joked.

"Oh, ha-ha very funny," Zen said rolling his eyes. "Come on, let's get ready, we've got a ship to steal tonight,"

Russell and his three man crew were now currently right outside the cave entrance. It was dark outside, only a few dim lights could be seen from the cave, everything else was black. In a few moments, their plan would begin and they would truly begin their career as pirates. They all handled differently. Sarah seemed not to care too much, she just wanted her ship. Zen had a grim look on his normally carefree face. This was the time to get some payback on those people who had wronged him, the marines. Pearl seemed excited that they were finally going to make a name for themselves; she would finally be a crew worthy of sailing to the Grand Line. As for Russell, on the outside he looked calm and relaxed as always. But, on the inside he was slightly nervous. _This is it._ He thought. _This is the first step to becoming legendary pirates! We can't mess up now._

Russell took a deep breath and addressed his crew. "We all know what to do, right?" he asked the. They all nodded so he continued. "Alright, guys we're going to have to do a lot of fighting in here, they won't give up that ship without a fight, so be careful. Also this is the last time you'll have to back out, after this the marines, bounty hunters, mercs; everyone will be coming after us. If you don't think you can handle that then now's the time to say so," no one said a word, much to Russell's relief, they all looked ready to begin.

"You don't need to worry about us, Russ, we know what we're getting into," Zen said. "We'll get that ship and make those marines look like a bunch of fools. I can hardly wait for them to come after us," he said smirking.

"Well, I best be off then," Sarah said. "I'll need to get the ship ready to leave. Just make sure you two don't keep me waiting. It's not nice to keep such a wondrous person such as myself waiting," Ignoring the glares she received from en and Pearl, Sarah exited the boat and walked into the cave.

"Soooo, when do we go in?" Pearl asked.

"Sarah said it'll take about twenty minutes to get to the ship and get through with all the formalities, once she's on the ship, she'll send a signal and then we move out," Russell said.

_~Inside the shipyard~_

Sarah walked past the guards, they all knew who she was and while they didn't know why she was here, no one wanted to hold her up. It was bad enough that her older brother was a high ranking marine, but the fact that she would personally beat them to pulp was what really kept them from interfering with her. However, there was one marine who was willing to stop her, probably the only one who could do so with out getting beat up.

"Do you mind telling me where you're going Miss Alcott?" Washer asked.

"Huh?" Sarah asked as she turned around. "W-wait, you're that Fleet Commander, James T. Washer. What are you doing here?"

Washer sighed. "Didn't I ask you first?' he asked in a bored tone. "Anyway, I'm here to provide extra security for the ship. Now what about you?"

Sarah was nervous but she didn't let it show. "I'm here to go over the ship and make sure everything's ready," she answered.

"Oh? Doubting your work?' Washer asked.

"No, I just like to go over everything before it gets sent off. Is that a problem?" Sarah asked getting angry at the commander.

"Okay then," Washer said, sounding like he didn't really care either way.

Sarah began walking down the rest of the way to the ship. She was walking for about a minute, before she realized that Washer was walking next to her. "Uh, excuse me. What do you think your doing?" Sarah asked.

"I'm escorting you to the ship," Washer replied. "It's not exciting, but it beats just standing there doing nothing,"

"B-but there's no reason to escort me! Nothing could possibly happen to me in here!" Sarah yelled.

Washer shrugged and said "I said it wasn't very exciting. I just wish something would happen," he sighed.

As if on cue, a cannon suddenly went off and a resounding '**BOOM**' echoed throughout the cave. Washer and Sarah both turned to see a marine running towards them.

"Are we under attack?" Washer asked, actually sounding hopeful.

"Er, no sir," the marine replied, which seemed to depress the Fleet Commander. "We were doing some maintenance on one of our cannons and it went off. I guess someone left it loaded and a spark must have lit the fuse,"

Washer sighed. "I told those guys not to smoke next to the cannons. They got me excited there for a second,"

Sarah sighed in relief. For a second she was worried that the others launched their attack early. _I guess everything is still going according to plan…wait, wasn't I supposed to set off a cannon incase something went wrong? Oh, boy._

_~Outside the shipyard~_

"Uh oh, that was Sarah's signal that something went wrong," Russell said. "Let's go!"

The three rushed in, Pearl going to the left side of the river and Russell and Zen going to the right. Several marines were walking around the dimly lit cave and were completely caught off guard when Russell's crew came. Zen launched several bones from his arms at the unfortunate marines, while Pearl made quick strikes with her rapier to incapacitate them. Meanwhile, Russell slipped away during the confusion to find the ammo depot.

He ran down the long tunnel, careful to avoid tripping on stones or bumps in the ground. After a bit of searching he found what he was looking for, he crouched behind a large rock to survey the depot. Two marines stood outside with their weapons at the ready. "Only two?" Russell said to himself. "That's no fun," Russell dashed from his hiding spot and leapt into the air. He landed on one marine and knocked him to the ground. The other one spun around to fire at him, but Russell grabbed his gun and tossed him to the side. Then, as the first marine was getting up, Russell grabbed him and slammed him into the wall of the storehouse. He threw the unconscious man at the other marine and knocked him out as well. "Okay, now time to get to work," Russell said.

_~With Washer and Sarah~_

Sarah had insisted on hurrying to the ship, claiming that she had important things to do. Washer didn't care and continued to follow him. He still had that bored look on his face. At least until a marine approached him. The man was out of breath and panting hard. "Sir! We're, huff huff, being attacked!" the man said.

"What! Really! It's not another false alarm is it!" Washer asked sounding excited.

"N-no sir! Huff huff, I-I don't know how many there are, but they'll be here soon," before the man could continue a large explosion echoed through out the cave.

"Did another cannon go off?" Sarah asked, trying to play dumb.

"No," Washer said. "That was to loud to be a cannon,"

"Are ammo depot!" the marine said, "they must be trying to prevent us from fighting back,"

"Hmm, finally some action!" Washer said. "You go get the men from the barracks and investigate that explosion," Washer ordered the marine.

"Yes sir!" the marine said before dashing off to the barracks.

"What about you?" Sarah asked.

"I'm going to wait here," Washer said.

"B-but why?" Sara asked. _If he stays here, then our whole plan could be ruined._

"Because whoever set off that explosion is smart, it's not to render us weaponless it's to distract us," Washer replied. "If I'm right then they'll be coming here to steal this ship, so all I have to do is wait for them to come to me. Then I'll finally get some excitement!"

AN: Sorry for the wait, I've been very busy lately so I haven't had much time to write. Anyway I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter, I'll try to have the next one up sooner.


	8. Scythe vsToothpick?

Scythe vs. …Toothpick?

Pearl was having trouble. She had come across the remains of an old building on her way to silence more cannons when a shot rang out and she was struck by a bullet. She dove behind a rock and looked around for her assailant, the wound already healing, and saw a glint come from the dilapidated building. Smirking, Pearl charged at sniper. She knew she would be able to recover from his shots quickly and that he probably wouldn't be able to hit her with all of his shots. However, she had not counted on there being more than one gunner in the building. Halfway to her target, four shots were fired from different parts of the building, three of them hitting her, fortunately they didn't hit vital areas, so she could recover quickly, but that didn't mean they didn't hurt.

Pearl dove through the open doorway and crouched behind what used to be a desk. She heard footsteps come from upstairs and soon four marines were looking around for her. "Where'd she go?" one asked.

"Does it matter?" another asked. "We must' a hit her half a dozen times, I doubt she'll live for very long,"

"We don't just assume that the enemy is dead," a third voice, possibly the one in command, said. "Now, spread out and find her!"

Pearl tried not to move or even breathe too loudly, she still needed a little more time to recover. She heard footsteps approach her and she willed her powers to work faster. The footsteps got closer and she drew her rapier, she wasn't going to let her captain down, she'd take these marines on, it wasn't like she hadn't done this before. She saw a leg come into view and she pulled her arm back to stab it, but before she could another arm caught hers, she turned around to she a young marine with his hat pulled down over his face holding her arm.

_~With Zen~_

Zen had already fought his way to his side of the gate and was looking up the ladder he'd have to climb to reach the top. "I hope the guys up there are more of a challenge. These weaklings barely warmed me up," Zen said with distaste. "Heh, I hope Pearl's already up there. I don't want to have to wait any longer than necessary," Zen started to climb up the ladder, but a bullet whizzed by his hand, he glanced over and saw a group of five marines charging at him.

Zen gave an evil grin. "If Pearl is up there, I hope she has more patience than me, cause I'm going to take things slow with these ones," Zen coved his body in bone armor and turned his right hand into a bone ax. He rushed to meet his enemies and tackled one of them and turned around to face the others, three of them drew their swords, while the fourth aimed his gun at him. Zen pointed his left hand at the barrel of the gun and a finger bone flew into it clogging the barrel, unfortunately fro the marine it happened right when his was pulling the trigger. The bullet couldn't get past the devil fruit enhanced bone and barrel exploded in a bright flash.

The marine clutched at his eyes, trying to regain his vision, but it didn't matter because Zen was on him quickly slashing with his bone ax. The marine fell down trying to stop the flow of blood, while Zen prepered to deliver a killing blow. He was interrupted, however, when the other three began to hack at his armor in a vain attempt to cut through it.

Zen snarled and turned around slashing at all three. Two went down with sever wounds, while the third managed to block the strike. He swung his sword at him, trying to hack at his armor, but it didn't do more than chip it in several places. Zen encased his other arm in a bone sword and stabbed at the marine, hitting his side and seriously wounding him. just as Zen prepared to finish off the injured marine another sword struck him form behind. The first one he tackled had gotten up and tried to protect his fellow marines. "Feh, I'm going to make this hurt!" Zen yelled as he prepared to use his ultimate attack.

_~With Russell~_

Russell was having fun. He weaved in and out of the marines, knocking them aside tossing them out of the way. "Hahaha, this is a great work out!" Russell said as he jumped on a marine's head and forced him to the ground. Another marine tried to rush him, but Russell grabbed his sword and swung him around into another group of a marines. "Come on though. Can't you guys try harder?" Russell asked. "I mean come on, aren't you guys elite guards or something? This is just too easy,"

A marine was snaking up from behind and he aimed his gun at his back. "Talk all you want. It won't save you," he said, smirking, as his finger got closer to the trigger.

But, Russell turned to face him. "I'm sorry did you say something?" Russell asked as he held out his fist, causing a marine to run into it, knocking himself out. The marine panicked and fired, but Russell flipped up in the air and landed in front of the marine in a handstand. "It's not nice to attack someone form behind!" Russell said as he shot his legs up into the man's chin. Russell rolled over into a crouching position and surveyed the battlefield, marines were strewn everywhere all unconscious with sever, but non life threatening, injuries. "Hmm, I guess that's all of them. Well, I better go take out those cannons so Sarah can go," Russell said running off towards the ship.

As he was running, he noticed several bodies; all were dead with various cuts and markings over them. _Wow, Zen really did a number on these guys. _Before Russell could continue his thoughts were interrupted by a man's scream form up ahead. He run towards the wall, were the sound came from. What he saw shocked him. Zen had extended a large number of bones form his arm to form a large box made form the bones. Inside was a marine, only his head was visible as the rest was trapped in the box. Russell overcame his shock and yelled "Zen what are you doing!"

Zen looked over at Russell and grinned. "Hey, Russ. I'm just finishing off this marine. Don't worry; I'll get the gate open in just a minute,"

"Zen," Russell said, keeping his voice even. "Let him go, now,"

"WHAT! But, Russ…" Zen began, but stopped at the look Russell gave him. "…Fine, but I don't have to like it," Zen said releasing his prisoner.

"I'm not asking you to," Russell said. "Now, hurry up. And by the way, this isn't over," With that Russell ran ahead to clear out the remaining defenses. Zen stood still for a bit, before sighing and climbing up to the gate controls

_~With Sarah and Washer~_

"Hmm," Washer said, still sounding bored. "I guess my men got beat," Hearing how quiet it had become. At this he started to grin. "Good, this should be fun,"

"Shouldn't you be more concerned for your subordinates?" Sarah asked. _I can't believe this guy! He sends in his own people hoping that they'll lose just so he can have some fun!_

"Oh are you still here," Washer asked. "Sorry I didn't notice you there," he said, sounding bored again.

"HEY! YOU SHOULD PAY ATTENITON TO ME! HOW CAN YOU IGNORE SOMEONE AS AMAZING AS ME!" Sarah fumed.

"Oh, did you just say something?" Washer asked.

Sarah looked like she was ready to kill him, which as she saw wouldn't be bad, because he was an enemy now, but was stopped by Russell's approach. Sarah backed away, she started to think of an excuse to leave, but surprisingly, Washer provided one for her. "You had better leave," Washer said. "This guy's already proven he can take down my men and they're highly trained. I don't want an innocent getting caught up in this. It wouldn't make exciting, just troublesome,"

"Uh, thanks? I guess," Sarah said. She was still confused by this guy, but she wasn't going to let a golden opportunity like this slip away, so she ran towards the ship.

"So, you're the one who defeated my men, not bad," Washer said.

"Heh, well I try. Besides I had some help. Zen and Pearl did they parts to," Russell admitted.

"A three man crew? That's all it took to break in here?" Washer asked, although he didn't sound very interested.

"Well, uh," Russell said. _Hmm, I don't want to give away Reinhart or break Sarah's cover. But, I'm terrible at lying! Oh, well I'll just wing it. _ "Umm, let's just fight alright," Russell said running forward, launching a kick at Washer's head. However, Washer caught the kick with one hand and pushed back, causing Russell to land awkwardly on his feet. _Wow, who is this guy!_

"I was hoping you would say that," Washer said as he reached into his pockets. "Now, then… let's fight!" he pulled something out of his pocket and threw them at Russell, who just barely dodged in time. Russell looked behind him and saw that his opponent had actually thrown several washers at him. What was more shocking was that the washers were imbedded into the wall behind him

"Okay then, I guess I'll have to take this fight seriously," Russell said as he grabbed his scythe and let the blade pop out.

"Alright then, I'll level the playing field for you," Washer said, taking his toothpick out of his mouth.

"You're going to take me on with a toothpick?" Russell asked.

"No, I'm going to beat you with a toothpick, there's a big difference," Washer said, the boredom creeping back into his voice. "Please try to keep this interesting, I don't want another easy fight"

"Then I'll just give you the fight of your life!" Russell yelled running at the older man and swinging his scythe around, trying to injure, but not kill, his opponent. To his surprise Washer blocked the strike… with the toothpick! "What… the?" Russell asked as he tried to push harder against his scythe.

"This isn't an ordinary toothpick; it's actually made from a very strong steel. And I'm no ordinary marine, I'm Fleet Commander James T. Washer," Washer said.

"A Fleet Commander, huh," Russell said grinning as he leapt back. "Well, this makes things more interesting,"

"Not for me," Washer said, yawning. He pulled out another washer and flipped lazily in the air for a while before throwing it at Russell.

Russell ducked and ran forward again swinging his scythe around in wild, but controlled, motions. "Well, maybe this'll make things interesting. "I'm Russell and me and my crew are the next greatest pirates!" Russell yelled, continuing his attack.

_~With Reinhart~_

Reinhart was walking back from the market when he bumped into an older man. "Oh, my apologies Mr. Kaza, I should have been paying more attention," Reinhart said.

"Ah, don't worry about Reinhart, I know you've got a lot on your mind," Mr. Kaza said. "Say, have you visited Washer yet. I know you two know each other pretty well,"

Reinhart nearly dropped the bag of groceries he was carrying. "W-Washer is here. I-I didn't know,"

"Uhahaha, I guess you wouldn't, even the great Reinhart can't know all the marines secrets. I only know, because my son works at the shipyard and he told me," Mr. Kaza explained.

"He's at the shipyard," Reinhart said, his anxiety growing.

"Yeah, he was brought in as extra protection for that new ship. I don't know why, no one's crazy enough to even think about breaking in there," Mr. Kaza said. "Say, are you alright Reinhart?" he asked, trying to peer under his hood.

"I'm…just not feeling well. Thank you for telling me about Washer, I'll be sure to visit him soon. Good day Mr. Kaza," with that Reinhart hurried back to his small shack.

"What should I do," Reinhart asked himself as he sat down. "With Washer there, they don't have a chance. He's too unpredictable; he'll cut them down without even trying," _So, what does this change_, a voice inside his head said. _I did my job, the rest id up to them. _Reinhart stood up and began to pace.

"But, I can't let them go to their deaths. What kind of person would I be?" Reinhart asked. _All I need to be concerned about is my own safety, that's why I left home. To save myself. _The voice inside his head spoke again. "No! I did it so I could find a way to stop the DeMarks! I did it so I could save everyone!" _Did you?_ The voice asked.

Reinhart leaned against a wall. "I'm a coward… aren't I?" _Yes, but you don't have to be. _The voice said. Reinhart stood up; he walked over to an old wooden chest and opened it. "Right, I can't hide forever. I refuse to act like my family did. I'm going to help them… no I'm going to save them," Reinhart said as he pulled out his custom weapon. "Even if it costs me my life!"

AN: Not as long as I'd like it to be, but here seems like a good place to end. Next chapter, we find out what happened to Pearl, see how Sarah does with stealing the ship and see how Reinhart helps the crew along with Russell's fight with Washer. Please tell me how it turned out.


	9. The Fight Continues

The Fight Continues

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece; all characters belong to their creators.

Russell swung his scythe around, aiming for Washer's legs; however Washer leapt and launched a kick at Russell's face. Reacting quickly, Russell blocked the attack with his arm, but he was still pushed back by the blow. Russell charged at the Fleet Commander again, this time he threw his scythe at him. Washer deflected the weapon with his toothpick, knocking it up in the air, but he was caught off guard by Russell's next move. Rather then, stopping after throwing his scythe, Russell continued to run forward and now began to launch a series of punches and kicks. With one last kick, Russell jumped up on top of Washer's shoulder's and, using them as a platform, jumped up again grabbing his scythe from midair and swung it down as hard as he could towards Washer when he fell within striking distance.

To his surprise, Washer had recovered from his assault and was able to block the scythe blade again with his toothpick. When Russell came back down to Earth, he rolled away from Washer, trying to put some distance between them. He started to pant heavily. _This guy is good. He barely looks tired at all, and he's been blocking my attacks like crazy._ When Russell got his breathing back to normal he noticed Washer was standing still smirking at him.

"I must admit, this has been a very interesting fight. I do hope you're not ready to give up yet," Washer said.

"Heh, are you kidding, I'm just getting started," Russell said as he held his scythe behind him and ran at Washer again.

"Good," Washer said still smirking. "If you surrendered, I would've been bored again," He pulled several washers out from his pocket and began to throw them Russell.

_~With Pearl~_

Pearl thought that the marine would surely call out to his comrades and inform them that he caught her, but to her surprise he held up a finger to his mouth and whispered. "Shh," Pearl was confused, did he just want her to stay quiet and not resist while he got the others, or was he trying to help her? She thought that the latter was crazy until he marine called out him.

"Hey, Sez. Have you found anything?"

_This is it_. Pearl thought. _I can't believe I got myself caught. _But, to her surprise the marine answered. "No, nothing yet,"

The leader of the group swore. "Well, she's got to be here somewhere! Keep looking!"

"Yes sir!" All of the marines answered.

The marine who had ahold of Pearl, Sez, let her go and began to pretend to search through some rubble while whispering to her, so that he wouldn't be overheard. "Are you alright?" he asked. Pearl was confused and didn't know how to answer. Sez noticed and turned to her. "No need to worry," he said taking off his hat. "I'm not really a marine," Without the hat obstructing his features, Pearl could get a good look at him. He was young, probably only 19 or 20. He had dark green hair and brown eyes. He also had a relaxed and happy look on his face, like he didn't have a care in the world.

"I'm alright," Pearl finally answered. It wasn't like telling him that would change anything. "I don't go down easily,"

"Well, that's good to hear," Sez said, nodding. "On the count of three then?" he asked.

"On the count of three?" Pearl asked. Wondering what he meant. However, Sez misunderstood and seemed to think that he was agreeing with him. He held up three fingers and began to slowly close them, one by one. Pearl finally realized what he was planning when he picked up his rifle, which was lying on the ground, but at that point it was too late. Sez leapt up and dashed towards one of the marines. Before the man could react, Sez slammed his rifle into his stomach.

"Sez! What the…" one of the marines started to say, but was cut off when Sez smacked him in the face with his rifle. The group leader turned around just in time to see Sez swing his rifle at him. He ducked and rolled back, before standing up and drawing his sword. He began to slash at Sez forcing him back, Sez, however, was still grinning, at least until he stumbled over a piece of debris and fell down. The marine looked down at Sez grimly before raising his sword for a killer blow, one that was prevented by Pearl stabbing him in the side, causing him to collapse.

"Are you alright?" Pearl asked as she helped Sez up.

"Yeah," he replied, no longer looking quite as happy. "I was just hoping no one would die. They weren't my crewmates, but they were good people,"

Pearl looked down at the marine she had stabbed. He was lying on his stomach and bleeding rapidly, Sez was right if they didn't give him immediate medical attention he would die. But, they didn't have any supplies; at least that was what Sez thought. Pearl walked over to the downed marine and placed her hand on the sword wound. Slowly, the wound began to close. Once it had fully closed, Pearl wiped her hands off on the marine's uniform and stood up. "That should do it. I doubt he'll bleed out now,"

Sez was surprised, but only for a moment before he began to laugh. "Jahahahah. I was wondering why you were able to get up with all of those bullet holes in you. You're a devil fruit user, aren't ya?"

"Uhh, well yeah,' Pearl admitted. "Now, if you don't mind who are you?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm Sez of the Azure Dragonfly Pirates. I'm the navigator and, when needed, spy," Sez explained.

"I'm Pearl of the…uh…well, we don't have a name yet, but we're pirates too. This is our first big heist," Pearl said proudly.

"Well, you sure picked one heck of a first job," Sez said. He paused for a second then asked. "Are you against Luffy or are you with him?"

"Hmm, well, I've never met the guy, but I've heard great things about him," Pearl said thinking. "I'd say I'd support him and I think the others would agree,"

"Well, that's a relief," Sez said as he leaned against the stairs. . "I'd hate to have to save someone and then kill them,"

"What do you mean?" Pearl asked, surprised. Sez didn't strike her as someone who would kill a person just because they don't like the pirate king.

"What do you mean, what do I mean?" Sez asked. "I told you, I'm a member of the Azure Dragonfly pirates. One of the most loyal pirates to Luff, right up there with the Marionette Pirates and the Capricorn Pirates," Sez explained. "And there are no neutrals in the war, everyone either wants to kill Luffy or have him stay in charge,"

"So, wait there's a war between the pirates?" Pearl asked. "I knew there was a disagreement between some of them, but…" Pearl began.

"A dis-a disagreement!" Sez yelled. "Try, well, a full blown war! Most of the pirates thought Luffy was too soft, so they rebelled and tried to kill him. He had to retreat and now we're preparing to fight back. Say we could use the help, will your crew join us?"

"I don't know," Pearl said. "There aren't that many of us and we don't even have…a…ship. Oh no! I completely forgot I've still got a job to do!" Pearl said as she rushed to the exit of the ruined building.

"Would you like it if I gave you a hand?" Sez asked, following her outside. "It's the least I could do, since I stalled you and all,"

Pearl shook her head no. "Thanks, but no thanks. The others are all doing their parts by themselves. It wouldn't be right if I had help,"

"Hmm, well then I'll see you around," Sez said. "Good luck!"

"Right, I've got a lot of catching up to do," Pearl said as she took off running.

_~With Russell~_

Russell deflected the projectiles and continued his charge forward. Washer suddenly stopped throwing his namesake and dashed forward to meet Russell. They both clashed Washer's toothpick and Russell's scythe, both pushing against the other, trying to knock their opponent off balance. Finally, Washer's strength was able to overcome Russell's and he was shoved to the ground. Washer jumped up and prepared to punch Russell, however Russell recovered from his fall quickly and rolled away. Russell began to pant again, he was exhausted. _Man, this guy just doesn't seem to get tired at all! I feel like I'm about to drop and he's barely sweating!_

"This has been quite the diversion," Washer said. "I'm enjoying this little fight, but I wonder how much longer I can drag it out? You appear to be quite tired; I doubt you'll last much longer,"

Russell just grinned back at Washer, but on the inside he was starting to get upset. Not at his words, but at the fact that he was letting his crew down._ I can't lose! Everyone's depending on me. I still need to fulfill my dream and my nakama's dreams. _"I won't lose," Russell said, causing Washer to raise an eyebrow. "And do you want to know why? Because, I've still got too much to do before I'll rollover and die," with that Russell charged at Washer again, he swung his scythe around his back swung with all his might. But, Washer once again blocked it with his toothpick. Undeterred, Russell lashed out with his leg and kicked Washer in the stomach, forcing him back.

With Washer off guard, Russell was able strike again with his scythe and make a cut across his chest. Washer stumbled back and looked at his new injury. "Heh, not bad, but I hope you can do better," he said as cracked his knuckles.

"Don't worry, I'm far from done," Russell said as he held his scythe in front of his self.

_~With Zen~_

"Dang it," Zen muttered. "Where the hell, is Pearl? She should've been here ten minutes ago," Zen was pacing in the small guard tower that controlled half of the main gate. He had been surprised to find out that he beat Pearl to his destination. He had even felt like gloating to her afterwards, but now he was starting to worry. "What if something happened to her? But, she can heal so she'll be fine right? But, what if it's so bad that it'll take hours to heal, or maybe she won't be able to recover. I mean, I don't know what kinda limits her devil fruit has. If those did do something like then I'll…" Zen's threat was cut short when he heard someone calling out to him.

"Zen! What are you doing? We're supposed to open the gate," Zen spun around; there was Pearl waiting for him to get ready to turn the switch, as if nothing was wrong.

"Pearl! What the- where have you been! I've been waiting for you!" Zen yelled out to her.

"Sorry, I ran into some trouble. I'll tell you more about it later. Right now, let's get the gate open," Pearl said moving her hand to hit the switch.

"Wait," Zen said looking around. "I still see cannons on your side,"

"Yeah I know," Pearl called back. "Russell's supposed to get those,"

"That's my point," Zen said. "You're already late, so what's keeping Russell?"

"Your right," Pearl said looking further up into the cavern. "And I don't see the Sarah and the ship, either,"

Zen growled. "This is not good," He looked up and down both sides of the river as far as he could see hoping to spot Russell or the ship, but he couldn't see either one.

"What should we do?" Pearl asked.

Zen sighed. On one hand they could go and try to help Russell, but if Sarah came by in the ship while they were helping him, then she'd be a sitting duck for the canons while they ran back to the gate. On the other hand, if they just waited either Russell, or Sarah, or both could be in major trouble. "We'll wait here a little while longer. If we don't see Russell or Sarah in fifteen minutes we'll go and check up on them,"

"But, what if they need our help now?" Pearl asked.

"Then we'll just have to hope they can hold out for fifteen minutes," Zen said, then he sighed. "Take care Russ,"

_~With Sarah~_

Sarah was utterly bored. _This must be how Washer felt._ She thought. She had already knocked out all of the guards and had 'suggested' that the remaining workers leave. Now, she had to wait for Russell to get done with his fight with Washer and take out all of the remaining cannons so she could leave. But, the fight was taking longer than she thought it would. "Man, is Russell that bad? Such an amazing person as myself shouldn't be kept waiting," she said. "Hmm, then again what if Washer is that _good_? Well, I can't do anything yet, not until the cannons are clear," Suddenly, several loud shots rang and the water around the ship was tossed up violently. Several gunners had realized that the pirates were after the ship and were willing to sink it to keep them from getting it. "Grr," Sarah growled as she made preparations to move the ship. "This is not my day. I'm going to need to start early or else I'm a sitting duck!"

_~With Russell~ _

The fight was dragging on, Russell was trying to think of a way to end the fight quickly, but nothing came to mind. _I need to get closer_ Russell thought as he back flipped overanother barrage of washers. He charged at Washer again, ready to end the fight. He swung his scythe with all of his might, bringing it crashing down towards Washer's head. This time, instead of using his toothpick to block the strike, Washer held up his hands and caught the scythe's blade, holding it in place with little effort. But, Russell wasn't done yet he brought his knee up, ramming it into Washer's stomach. Washer stumbled back and looked up just in time to see Russell throw a punch at his head. The blow connected, but before Russell could bring his scythe around to finish the fight, Washer threw another washer at him, and at that range he couldn't miss.

Russell felt like all of the wind had been knocked out of him. He clutched his stomach were the washer had hit. _How…can anyone…throw a washer…that hard!_ Russell thought, as he tried to stand up straight.

"Too bad it's over. I quite enjoyed our little match," Washer said, sounding bored again. "Oh well, I guess all good things must come to an end," He started to walk away and when he and put enough distance to make sure that Russell couldn't try anything he pulled out a handful of washers. He smirked as he threw them straight at Russell's head.

Time seemed to slow down for Russell; he could see the washers coming closer and closer. _Is this it? Is it really over?_ Russell thought. _No! I won't let it end this way! I've got too much to do, I still need to become a famous pirate and help my crew with their dreams, and I still need to have a 'chat' with Zen. _"I won't die here!" Russell yelled defiantly. He stood up and prepared to throw himself out of the way of the washers, but as fate would have it he didn't need to.

A shield came flying somewhere to the left and it blocked all of the washers. Russell noticed that it was attached to a chain moments before it was pulled back to its owner. Russell looked to see who had saved him and was shocked to see "Reinhart! What are you doing here!"

"Well, I thought I would take you up on that offer… if it's still open," Reinhart said.

Russell grinned. "You bet it's still open! Now, come on let's take this guy down!"

"Sorry captain, but I'm afraid that you are too injured to be of much use in this fight. Don't take it the wrong way; few can go this long with sustaining as few injuries as you have. But, if you continue to fight, you could be killed and as part of your crew I could not allow that. Besides the others are waiting for you to clear the rest of the cannons, if you hurry this mission can still be salvaged,"

"Hey, I can't just leave you hear by yourself! This guy's good Reinhart," Russell said as he got ready to fight again.

Reinhart smiled at his new captain. "Believe me captain; I am well aware of his capabilities. We have worked together in the past, which is why I'll be able to beat him, I know how he fights. Besides you've already worn him down, it shouldn't be that hard to finish this for you,"

"Are you sure you can handle him?" Russell asked skeptically.

"Do not worry about me," Reinhart said holding up his left hand. On it was a gauntlet with the shield, chain, and a small winch designed to pull the chain and shield back, after they've been thrown. "I've got quite a bit of experience with this. Now go, before it's too late,"

Russell nodded and ran off to clear the other shore of cannons so that Sarah could go. "Give him a good hit for me, will ya!" Russell hollered back to Reinhart as he ran off.

"I will captain," Reinhart said smirking slightly.

Washer, who observed the whole scene with only mild interest, turned to look Reinhart in the eyes. "So, you're a pirate now, huh?"

"I'm afraid so," Reinhart said. "I hope this doesn't mean you're going to hold back," He held his shield down to his side, ready to throw it at moment's notice.

"I won't, if you answer my question," Washer said. "Why did you lie to your new captain?"

"Well, we have worked together before and I do know you're fighting style, which is how I beat my opponents," Reinhart said.

"And you know that I don't have a fighting style, so your method isn't going to work," Washer said.

"True, but I still believe I can beat you. If I can't beat you, then I won't be able to fulfill my dream of removing the DeMarks from power. So I will do whatever I can to defeat you," Reinhart said. "And in the worst case scenario I'll be able to buy the others enough time to get the job done,"

"Very well then, "Washer sighed. "Let's see if your theory is correct or not,"

AN: Well, I've been gone longer than I planned, but I've had college stuff going on so please don't hate me too much, I'll try to update sooner. Please tell me what you think of the chapter.


	10. The Man of Mystery vs The Man of Boredom

The Man of Mystery vs. the Man of Boredom

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece. All characters belong to their creators.

Reinhart hurled his shield at Washer, who countered by raising his toothpick blocking the shield. He flipped back and threw several washers while he was in midair; Reinhart brought his shield back in time to deflect the washers and threw his shield out again as quickly as he could. Washer dived to the side and managed to avoid the blow, but part of the shield grazed his pant leg. Washer smirked, but then something caught his eye, his pant leg was torn. "Heh, I forgot that shield of yours had a razor edge to it," Washer said.

"How many times have you seen me use this thing?" Reinhart asked.

"Eh, I never paid it too much attention," Washer said. "It didn't really seem interesting to me," He pulled out another handful of washers and threw them at Reinhart. Then he dashed forward and began to launch a series of punches and kicks which Reinhart was barely able to dodge. Reinhart had to keep backing up to avoid the onslaught of attacks. _I can't keep this up forever. I need to think of something quick._ His eyes darted around looking for something that could help him. He spotted a small tower of crates and grinned beneath his veil.

This time he let one of Washer's punches hit him. It knocked him back giving him plenty of space to start his plan. He threw his shield not at Washer but at the tower of crates. The shield wrapped around the topmost crate, and Reinhart pulled back on the chain causing the crate to go flying towards Washer. Washer was unfazed, however, and with one kick shattered the crate.

Washer stretched and yawned. "Come now. Did you really think that would work?"

"To be honest no," Reinhart answered. "But I was hoping it would,"

Washer smirked and pulled out his toothpick. "Do you still think you can buy your new friends enough time to escape?"

"Washer, you know me. I'm nothing if not a man of my word," Reinhart replied as he held his shield in front of him.

Washer dashed forward, ready to end the fight quickly. Not wanting to let him get an advantage, Reinhart charged forward as well. Washer clashed his toothpick against Reinhart's shield, again and again, but neither opponent seemed to be wearing down. _I hope the plan is still on track, because I don't know how much longer I can keep this up. _Reinhart thought.

_~With Russell~_

"Man, I am REALLY behind schedule," Russell said as he took out another cannon. "I still need to get to the other side; otherwise Sarah won't last two seconds with those cannons aiming at her," Russell raced forward, looking for the next cannon to attack.

As he raced down along the river he heard more cannons fire, but these shots came from the opposite side and were aimed further along than he was. "Oh you have got to be kidding me," Russell said as he saw the ship sail down towards him. "All I asked her to do was to wait for me to get there. Was that too hard!" Russell yelled as he raced towards the ship. Once he was directly across from it, he leaped aboard.

_~With Sarah~_

Sarah was having a hard time dodging all of the cannon fire. First of all there were still cannons on both sides of her, and second there was little room to maneuver. The river was deep enough and wide enough to sail a ship in or out of it, but it wasn't fit for evasive maneuvering. Fortunately, luck seemed to be on her side as most of the shots missed; however, a few did manage to hit the deck which only made Sarah angry. "Hey! What do you fiends think you are doing to my wonderful ship! You can't just blast it with those lousy cannons and sink my masterpiece!" she yelled.

But her threats fell on deaf ears, as the gunners continued their assault. Finally, one shot landed right next to her and sent her over the edge. "Grrragh! That's it!" She fixed the wheel to keep the ship steady and marched over to the side of the ship. The next cannonball that was fired went right towards her, but instead of moving out of the way she reached her hand out and caught it. "You can have this back!" Sarah yelled at the stunned gunners as she threw the cannonball back, destroying the cannon and scattering the marines operating it.

"That's what you get when you mess with someone as fabulous as me!" Sarah yelled. She started to turn around when she saw another cannonball, but this one was coming right at her. "Oh crap,"

Just when the cannonball was about to hit her, Russell came flying through the air. He pulled his scythe out and swung at the cannonball, deflecting it and saving Sarah. He landed next to her in a crouch, ready to deflect anymore cannonballs that came towards them. "Why didn't you wait for me to disable the cannons?" he asked.

"I don't like to be kept waiting," Sarah replied. "What took you so long?"

"Washer definitely earned his rank as a Fleet Commander," Russell said. "Lucky for me Reinhart came and held him off,"

"Reinhart?" Sarah asked. "Isn't he the one who came up with this plan?"

Before Russell could answer, another shot rang out form the cannon, this time striking the railing. "Dang, these guys are seriously getting on my nerves," Russell said. "Listen, I'll explain everything later. Right now I need to take out the cannons on the left side of the river. Don't worry though; the right side should be clear now,"

"Alright, good luck captain, and don't make me wait again…or else," Sarah threatened.

"I wouldn't dream of it," Russell said nervously. "Uh, I should go… break… something now. Gotta go!" With that Russell ran to the edge of the ship and jumped towards the railing, running towards the nearest cannon with his scythe at his side.

_~With Reinhart~ _

Reinhart was wearing down, so far neither one had landed a significant blow. However, Washer was slowly forcing Reinhart back; it wouldn't take long for Reinhart to be backed against the river with no way to avoid Washer's attacks. _I won't be able to hold out much longer at this rate. _Reinhart thought as he blocked another vicious punch from Washer. _What can I do to turn this fight around? _Suddenly, Washer brought his leg underneath Reinhart's shield and kicked straight up knocking his shield out of the way; giving Washer enough time to slash Reinhart with his toothpick. Reinhart stumbled back, his foot slipping of the edge and almost causing him to fall into the river.

"Give it up Reinhart, you can't beat me," Washer said.

"And disappoint my new captain?" Reinhart asked while holding his injured side. "I haven't been on his crew for an hour and you want me to embarrass him like that?" Reinhart jumped to the side and threw his shield at Washer, the sudden attack caught him off guard and he was forced to raise his arms to block the shield. The razor edge dug into his arms and left a deep gash on them. "Believe me Washer, I'm not about to quit even if I can't beat you,"

"Hmph, you are a stubborn one aren't you?" Washer said smirking as he drew a few washers and began to toss them up in the air.

"Heh, you think I'm bad you should meet my father sometime," Reinhart said.

"I just hope he's more exciting than you!" Washer said as he caught the washers and threw them straight towards Reinhart. Reinhart dived out of the way and hurled his shield at Washer, who deflected it with his toothpick. "You're not going to get lucky again,"

"Well, we'll just have to see about that won't we?" Reinhart asked.

_~With Zen and Pearl~_

Zen was getting worried, he knew it was his idea to wait and see what would happen before going out to help, but he couldn't stand just standing here waiting while the others might be getting killed. _Something is wrong, very wrong. But, what can I do that won't mess up the mission?_ "Grhh, to hell with this!" Zen yelled."I'm not going to sit here and let Russell and Sarah get killed, I'm going,"

"But Zen," Pearl said.

"No buts, Pearl," Zen said. "I now I said we would wait, but I have to go,"

"No, Zen you're not listening," Pearl began.

"I may not be listening to reason, but they're our friends, and we can't turn our backs on them," Zen said.

"I agree, but,"

"What did I say about buts? I'm going and that's it!"

"Zen if you go we can't open the gate,"

"I know, I just hope that I can get back in time to open the gate for Sarah,"

"Zen, you do realize that she's already here, right?" Pearl asked.

"…What?" Zen turned around and saw the ship, slightly battered, coming towards them. "Why didn't you say so, open the gate on three. One…two…three!" with that Zen and Pearl pressed the switch and raised the gate.

"Sarah, are you alright? What happened," Pearl asked.

"Some Fleet Commander, Washer or something, was apparently stationed here last night, he stalled me form stealing the ship and fought Russell so he couldn't take down the cannons," Sarah explained.

"Is he alright?" Pearl asked.

"Of course he's alright," Zen said. "Sarah got here in one piece, so he must've beaten that marine and took out the cannons, right Sarah?"

Sarah shook her head. "No, he took out the cannons, but only because Reinhart came and fought Washer for him,"

"Reinhart? What's he doing here?" Zen asked.

"How should I know?" Sarah asked as she sailed through the gate. "Now are you coming or what?"

Zen and Pearl leapt down from the towers and landed on the deck on the ship. "Alright now where's Russell?" Zen asked.

"Right here!" Russell said as he jumped from the shore to the deck. "Well I gotta say this was one heck of a first job!" he said while grinning. Then he paused as he looked over at everyone. "Wait a sec, we're missing someone, where's Reinhart?"

"We don't know," Zen said. "We didn't even know he was coming with us,"

"Hmm, this isn't good," Russell said. "He may need help fighting Washer. You guys go on ahead, we'll catch up,"

"Wait, if this guy's so strong I should go too," Zen said.

"No," Russell said. "I don't want anyone to get hurt, and me and Reinhart are the only ones who know how he fights. It's too dangerous for anyone else to fight him, not when we're this weak,"

"Hey! We are not weak!" Zen said angrily. "We broke in here and took down all of these marines by ourselves. One guy isn't going to stop us,"

"Listen Zen, we're not ready to take on a Fleet Commander. He's too strong for us," Russell said. Zen looked like he wanted to say more, but he just nodded. "Don't worry, before too long we'll be taking on Admirals and Fleet Commanders just like the best pirates around. But, for right now I've got to bail out Reinhart. Good luck you guys!" Russell said as he jumped off the edge of the ship and ran towards where he last saw Reinhart and Washer.

"The guy rushes off to fight one of the highest ranking marines around, and he wishes us good luck?" Sarah asked.

"Isn't it amazing though?" Pearl asked. "Our captain rushing off to save the man who saved him, that's what pirating is all about,"

"Really, because I thought pirating was about getting treasure and fighting people," Zen said.

"It's more than that!" Pearl said. "It's about camaraderie and helping out your crew!"

"Wow, someone has an overly romanticized idea of being a pirate," Sarah said.

"Oh what do you know, you've only been a pirate for a day. I've been doing this for years," Pearl shot back.

"Is that why you last crew stranded you on an island?" Zen asked mockingly.

"Mind your own business!" Pearl yelled.

_~With Russell~_

Russell ran as fast as he could, not evening bothering to deal with the few marines still able to fight. "I've got to hurry if I want to make it on time" Russell muttered to himself. "Come on, come on, where are you?" he looked around for any signs of combat, but he couldn't see anything. Suddenly he heard something, a cry of pain. "Not what I was hoping for, but it'll work. Hold on Reinhart, I'm coming!" Russell yelled.

_~With Reinhart~_

Washer kicked at Reinhart again, but, just as before, it was blocked. The kick did, however, force Reinhart back. Reinhart knew that something had to give, he couldn't block forever, and some of Washer's blows were starting to connect. He swung his shield and struck Washer with the front side of his shield, causing Washer to stumble back as well.

Washer grinned and spat out a bit of blood. "Not bad, but I'm afraid you're just not good enough," he dashed forward and threw a washer directly at Reinhart's face, and forcing him to raise his shield to block the attack. While his shield was raised, Washer swept his legs out from underneath him. He then slammed his leg on Reinhart's chest, forcing him to crash into the ground, hard. Washer then picked him up and punched him in the face, sending him flying back into the cave wall. Washer then threw two washers right at his knee caps. Reinhart couldn't help but cry out in pain as they crashed into them. Reinhart collapsed onto the floor, just as Washer approached him. "Like I said, not bad, but not good enough either. Too bad that pirate guy's not here. I would have like to finish our fight that you interrupted," he said as he raised his fist to finish Reinhart off.

Suddenly, a foot connected with his face and sent him stumbling back. Russell flipped back and landed form his kick in a kneeling position. "If you wanted to fight me," Russell said as he stood up. "All you had to do was ask,"

"Captain," Reinhart said as he struggled to his feet. "W-what are you doing here?"

"What does it look like?" Russell asked. "I'm saving you; ya know returning the favor,"

"But, Washer is too strong. He can kill you," Reinhart said.

"And he can kill you just as easily," Russell said. "So why don't we take him on together?" Russell grinned and gave Reinhart a thumbs up.

Reinhart was unsure how to answer at first, but finally decided to simply nod. "Very well Captain. Let's defeat Washer and continue on with our journey,"

"Right, I hope you're ready Washer, 'cause here we come!" Russell yelled as he and Reinhart dashed towards Washer.

"Now things are getting exciting," Washer said as he charged forward as well.

Russell and Washer clashed first, scythe against toothpick, both trying to gain an advantage against the other. Russell jumped back and Washer, sensing an opportunity, lunged forward with his toothpick. However, Reinhart threw his shield in between them blocking the blow. Russell jumped over the shield and swung his scythe at Washer, cutting his chest. Russell landed and launched a kick towards him, but Washer jumped back. However, he didn't notice Reinhart's shield wrap around his leg until it was too late.

"Whiplash!" Reinhart yelled he flung Washer up even higher before slamming him to the ground. Washer picked himself up and threw a washer at an approaching Reinhart, but failed to notice Russell running at him from the side. When he was close enough and punched him in the stomach, knocking him back down.

"You may've been able to take us both on individually, but you can't take us both on at once," Russell said smirking.

"Believe me, I'm just getting started," Washer said.

"Then maybe we should finish this before we get serious," Reinhart said as he readied his shield.

"I agree, let's end this," Russell said.

They both ran towards Washer, who countered by throwing washers at them. Instead of dodging or blocking the washers, they continue to run straight forward. Reinhart threw his shield at Washer's head causing him to duck down, but Russell anticipated this and jumped over Reinhart and landed in front of Washer who was still crouched. "Good-bye!" Russell said as he smacked Washer with the handle of his scythe, sending him flying into the river. "Alright! Now let's go before Zen tries to take over my crew," Russell said grinning at Reinhart.

"That would be…unfortunate," Reinhart said, smiling back.

"Then let's hurry up!" Russell said as he took off running to the cave entrance with Reinhart right behind him.

_~Later~_

Russell and Reinhart were able to catch up with the others thanks to a small boat Reinhart had in case he needed to leave to a new island. "Well, it's good to see you guys are still alive," Zen said jokingly.

"I'm glad to see that you were so worried about us Zen," Russell said, joking back. "Hey wait a second, Reinhart don't you need the stuff form your place?"

"No, all of my belongings are in the boat that we used to escape," Reinhart explained.

"Wait, I only saw a few papers and charts," Russell said. "You had a ton of stuff back in that shack of yours. What about all of that stuff?"

"Oh that, I decided that it was too much knowledge for one person to have, at least one person who is being chased," Reinhart said. "So, I burnt it all,"

"All of it!" Russell asked surprised. "But, wasn't that your life's work?"

"Yes it was, but now that chapter of my life is closed. Now I'm starting over," Reinhart said.

"Yes this is touching and all, but you seemed to have forgotten the most important thing," Sarah said. "ME!"

"I've got a feeling that this is going to be a loooooong trip," Pearl said.

"Mhhm," Zen agreed as he and Pearl watched Russell and Sarah argue about who was the most important person on the ship, while Reinhart slowly backed away.

AN: Well another chapter is done, only one more brief story arc before the crossover. Hopefully it won't take me to long to get it out, but that depends on my college work. Anyway I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I'll try to have another one up soon.


	11. The Mysterious Ship

The Mysterious Ship

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece; all characters belong to their creators

After Sarah and Russell had ended their 'who was more important' yelling match things calmed down aboard the ship. Russell walked around, admiring his crew's new ship. _I'm glad we were able to get through that little adventure in one piece._ Russell thought. _But, now things are really going to get intense. I hope everyone's ready. _Russell was brought out of his thoughts by Zen who ran up from the lower deck.

"Hey Russell, you've got to check this out," Zen said grinning. "Turns out this ship has a fighting arena that takes up the whole second deck!"

"Really?" Russell asked. "You feel like going a few rounds?"

"Ha, I'll try to take it easy on you," Zen said as he turned to go back below deck.

"Wait a sec Zen," Russell said grabbing Zen's arm. "We still need to talk about what happened back in that base,"

Zen sighed. "Do we really have to talk? Look I'm sorry I lost my cool back there, but it's nothing ok?"

"It's not 'nothing' Zen," Russell said. "I haven't seen you like that since we first met. We're friends you can talk to me,"

Zen looked down at the deck. "Listen Russell you are my friend, probably my best friend, but there are some things I just don't want to talk about. Things I can't talk about,"

"Alright, I understand," Russell said. "But, I don't want you going overboard again alright. We'll fight marines, that's just part of the job. But, slaughtering them is something we don't do. We're not monsters,"

"You're right Russell," Zen said. "I'll try to stay calm next time. But, I won't hold back on any marine, or any opponent for that matter,"

"That's good enough for me," Russell grinning again. "Now, let's go downstairs so I can humiliate you in front of everybody,"

"Ha, you wish," Zen said as they started down the stairs. When they arrived at the arena they saw Pearl and Sarah fighting, although it wasn't what they were expecting. Both of them were on the ground Pearl was hitting Sarah in the side and Sarah was pulling Pearl's hair. "Alright! Cat fight!" Zen said and laughed. However, Pearl and Sarah stopped fighting each other and glared at Zen before pouncing on him. "Oh crap," was all he could say before they began to pummel him.

"Aww, I wanted to beat him up," Russell joked as he walked over to Reinhart who was standing in a corner watching the spectacle. "Sooo, what happened exactly?"

"Well, Pearl wanted to spar with Sarah, but Sarah made some rather…colorful remarks about why she shouldn't have to spar with an average pirate and a less than average looking woman. It went downhill from there pretty fast," Reinhart said.

"Hmm, we'll need to work that out later," Russell said. "Right now, we need to do something about this fight. I know! I'll go grab some chairs. No sense in just standing here,"

"Good idea, I think I'll prepare some lunch. I'm no cook, but I should be able to make something edible at least,"

"Right, because we can't enjoy this beating on empty stomachs and I'm sure they're working up an appetite too," Russell said as he left the room. "Let's see, I think I saw some chairs up on the deck. I go grab those.

As Russell walked on deck he looked around for the chairs. He saw some against the railing and went to grab them. When he did he saw something off in the distance. He pulled out a telescope and looked through it, what he saw shocked him. He dashed to the stairs where he bumped into Reinhart.

"Ah, Captain I was going to ask if there was anything you wanted in particular," Reinhart began.

"No time to eat Reinhart, get the others up here as fast as you can," Russell said.

"What's wrong captain?" Reinhart asked. He was on edge now, his hand slipping to the back of his cloak to his emergency knife in case they were attacked.

"Just go get the others, I'll explain in a minute," Russell said as he went to go steer the ship.

A few minutes later the crew was assembled and had their weapons ready. Zen stepped forward and spoke first. "Not that I'm not grateful for the break from the beat down I was getting, but Russ what's going on?

Russell gestured off to the side and the crew turned to see what it was. They too were shocked by what they saw. It was a large ship, a trading company's logo was painted on the side, but it was hard to tell what it was due to the condition the ship was in. Calling it 'wrecked' would've been an understatement. The ship was totaled, the sail was completely shredded, the sides were full of holes, and the deck was in splinters.

"What happened?" Sarah asked in a hush tone.

"That's what I want to find out," Russell said. "We're going to go on board and look for survivors, so get ready everyone. We'll be there in a minute,"

_~At the ship~_

"Alright, we don't know what did this, or if they're nearby. They could still be here for all we know, so be careful," Russell said. "Pearl I want you and Reinhart to stay and guard the ship. Zen you take the second deck, Sarah the third, and I'll take the bottom deck. Remember to look for any still alive,"

"Wait, before you go," Reinhart said as he opened a satchel he brought with him and brought out several Baby Den-Den Mushis. "Take these so you can keep in touch,"

"Thanks, alright let's move out," Russell said as they went to the stairs. Pearl walked back to the ship and began to practice her swordplay, while Reinhart climbed up to the crow's nest.

_~ With Zen~_

"Man, this place is creepy," Zen said as he walked down a hallway. The only light coming from a lantern he had brought with him. He looked around at the walls and noticed they were covered in slash marks and bullet holes. "Okay, so either an entire army attacked this place, or the people on this ship put up one hell of a fight. But, something's not right…" Zen thought that something was missing. "Wait, if there was a battle here where are all the bodies," he looked around. "No bodies, no blood, just what happened here?" he asked as he knelt to examine the floor.

Suddenly he heard a small creak in the boards behind him. An average person might have just assumed it was because the ship was such a terrible state. But, Zen wasn't an average person, and he knew that assuming something could be harmless was a good way to get killed. He slowly stood up and calmly walked to an open room. He looked around in side with his lantern and formed a bone ax with his other arm. He spun around and stuck the ax in the wall right next to the head of a young woman. "Alright who are you and why are you following me?"

"Ahh!" the girl gasped. She looked to be in her early twenties and had long dark hair, green eyes behind a pair of glasses; she wore a dark blue coat over a white shirt, and a blue skirt with black heels. "I-I was a passenger abroad this ship. We were attacked by pirates, when the fighting started I hid, now I don't know where anyone is. I think they might be..." she could finish her sentence and she began to shiver.

Zen sighed "Alright, hold on a second," he said as he turned his arm back to normal and took out his Den Den Mushi. "Hey Russ, I found a survivor what now?" he waited for an answer, but there was only silence. "Hello, Russ, Sarah, are you guys listening?" Still nothing. "Oh this is just perfect," Zen turned to the girl. "What's your name?" he asked.

"I-I'm Clara," she replied. She looked nervous and her eyes darted from side to side. "Why didn't your friends call back? D-Do you think the pirates could still be here?" she asked fearfully.

Zen scoffed. "Please, it would take a lot more than a few weakling pirates to take those two down. I'm sure there's nothing to worry about," All of a sudden the whole ship began to shake and Zen and Clara were thrown to the floor. "Then again...I've been wrong before," Zen said as he sat up and winced. "What was that?"

_~With Sarah~_

Sarah was walking through the corridor looking around for any survivors. "Hellooo. Is there anybody here?" Sarah asked. "Preferably someone who doesn't want to kill me," she muttered to herself. She had been walking around aimlessly for what seemed like forever and wasn't having very much luck. "Ugh, where is everybody. It's like they all just vanished," Sarah was brought out of her musings by a hand that grabbed her ankle. "GAH!" she yelled as she kicked at the hand, but it felt like she kicked a piece of metal. "Owowowowow," she looked down at the hand that had a hold of her and saw a young man pull himself up. Well, he looked young, maybe nineteen or so. But, he was over six feet tall and had a large build. He had tan skin and messy black hair. He wore a white t-shirt with a brown leather jacket that had been damaged by the sun, dark blue jeans, and brown hiking boots. All of his clothes had rips and tears in them, although whether it was from the battle or from being worn for so long Sarah couldn't tell. His eyes are what caught her attention however; the left eye was a dark coal black, while the right was brown.

Once he stood up, Sarah realized that he might be dangerous. She decided to take care of him before he could try anything Sarah dashed up and punched the young man as hard as she could in the stomach. Once again she hurt herself, but this time she knocked the man down on the ground causing the whole ship to shake.

"Ow, what was that for?" the man asked standing back up.

"Uh, aren't you one of the people who attacked this ship?" Sarah asked as she tried to ignore the pain in her hand.

"No, I was a passenger on this ship when it was attacked," the man replied calmly.

"Oh," was all Sarah could manage. "Uh, I'm really sorry about that,"

"Don't worry, I think you hurt yourself more than me anyway," the young man said.

"Hehe, uh yeah. I think you're right," Sarah said. "Oh, I'm Sarah by the way. What's your name?"

"Hiro-Shu," he said simply.

"Well, I came here with some…acquaintances. We're here to find out what happened," 

"We were attacked by pirates they came out of nowhere, the crew tried to fight them back and I helped, but their leader was too strong. After the fight was over, the pirates took what they wanted and the dead were given burials at sea the rest escaped on the lifeboats," Hiro-Shu explained.

"Wait a second," Sarah said. "How come you didn't leave with them?"

"I overheard some of the pirates talking about using this ship as a trap to lure passing ships to investigate so they can ambush them easier. I stayed to try to prevent that, but I was knocked unconscious by someone. I guess they left some to keep an eye on the ship," Hiro-Shu said.

"This gets better and better, how can such terrible things happen to such a great person like me!" Sarah fumed. "I guess I better call Russell and let him know what's going on," Sarah pulled out her Den Den Mushi and tried to contact Russell. "Hello, Russell are you there? Cal you hear me?"

"…rah, what did you…okay?" Russell's voice was broken up by static and almost impossible to make out. "Sa…ing on? Find som…"

"Russell, I can't understand you? What are you saying?" Sarah asked. This time, however, her only response was static. "Great, we need to get out of here. Head back up to the deck and see if we can reach him there,"

"Aren't you worried about him? Whoever attacked me could be with him," Hiro-Shu said.

"Oh, please, Russell may not look like much, but he's actually pretty tough," Sarah said. "He can handle himself,"

Sarah and her new companion began to make their way back up to the main deck. When they reached the second deck they heard something coming from up ahead. Hiro-Shu moved in front of Sarah and readied himself for a fight. However, when Zen walked out of the darkness Sarah put her hand on his arm. "It's okay, he's one of my men," Sarah said.

"Pfft, you're men?" Zen asked. "I'm second in command of our group; you're just the shipwright,"

"Just the shipwright! Do you have any idea how important my job is!" Sarah yelled.

"Hey wait a sec, who's this guy?" Zen asked, finally noticing Hiro-Shu.

"This is Hiro-Shu, he was one of the passengers on this ship when it was attacked," Sarah said.

"Well, I didn't think we'd find any survivors, let alone two," Zen said grinning.

"Two?" Hiro-Shu asked. "I thought I was the only one who stayed behind,"

"No, Clara was hiding out here. Weren't you Clara?" Zen asked. But, he didn't receive a response. "Clara?" he turned around, but Clara had disappeared. "Dang it, where'd she go?"

"Where'd who go?" a voice asked. The group turned around to see Russell coming up from the stairs.

"There was this girl I was with, Clara, she was right here a second ago," Zen said as he looked around for her.

Before they could continue the search, Russell's Den Den Mushi went off; he picked it up and answered it. "This is Russell," he said.

"RUSSELL!" Pearl's voice came through the Den Den Mushi "We need help! We're under attack and Reinhart's unconscious! Get over here no…" the rest was cut off by a thud.

"Pearl? Pearl! We need to go!" Russell said as he dashed towards the exit.

"Come on!" Zen said as he followed quickly behind him.

When the group arrived on the deck on their ship they saw Reinhart slumped against the railing and Pearl was lying on the ground. Russell ran over to check on them. "Whew, they're all right," Russell said.

"Who could have done this?" Sarah asked as she observed the damage to her friends.

"O-oh, there you are Mr. Zen," spoke a female voice. Zen turned around to see Clara standing behind them on the wrecked ship. "I-I got lost and ended up here by mistake. Is everyone alright?"

"Oh, everyone will be just fine," Zen said. "Just as soon as you're gone!" He threw several on his finger bones at her and she jumped to the side to dodge them.

"W-what are you doing?" Clara asked as she stared at him.

"You can drop the act," Zen said. "I can tell you're really strong. No matter how you tried to hide it, a killer can also tell another killer. You attacked the ship, didn't you?"

"Hmph," Clara said. "And I thought you were the dumb one. Yes I'm one of the pirates who attacked the ship. In fact I am actually Clara, the first mate of the Phantom Pirates, the most infamous pirates in these waters. And you had better surrender before you're destroyed,"

"Heh, you think you can take on all of us by yourself?" Zen asked. "I'll take care of you myself. Consider it payback for what you did to my nakama,"

"Who said anything about fighting you myself?" Clara asked as she gestured out to the side of the ship. The crew turned to see what she was pointing at and saw another ship; only this ship looked like it had seen better days. The sail was tattered, and the wood was cracked and breaking. It didn't look as bad as the cargo ship, but it wasn't in as good shape as Russell's ship.

"Oh, this won't end well," Russell said as he looked at the approaching ship.

AN: Sorry it's late, but things got busy around finals and the holiday so again I apologize. I hope you enjoyed it, please tell me what you think.


	12. The Phantom Pirate

The Phantom Pirate

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece; all characters belong to their creators.

The tattered ship sailed next to the ruined cargo ship and the crew began to disembark. Soon Russell and his friends were surrounded by men with pale skin whose clothes were tatted and faded. One of the men, a tall figure dressed in dark blue jacket over a white dress shirt and pants stepped forward. He had long black hair and grey eyes, and he wore two long steel gauntlets with claw like fingers over his arms. He had a twisted smirk on his face when he saw Russell's crew.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" he asked. "A couple of would-be heroes trying to save a dead ship? Erahahaha. That is perfect, absolutely perfect,"

"Hey! We aren't 'would-be heroes'!" Russell yelled. "We're pirates!"

"Oh really?" the man asked. "What is the name of your crew then?" Russell paused for a moment thinking. "You don't even have a name yet? Now I just feel bad about taking down a few beginners,"

"No, you'll feel bad after I cut you in half!" Zen said as he dashed towards him. He turned his hand into a bone ax and swung it at the man, hoping to end this quick before a prolonged fight would began. He knew that his nakama were strong, but these were veteran pirates, they had years of experience behind them, and Zen wasn't eager to risk the lives of his weaker crew members. To his surprise though, the bone ax cut straight through the man's side and Zen smirked. Until he realized that the ax hadn't cut through the man, it had _passed _through. "What the…" Zen was caught off when the man lashed out with his gauntlets. Zen hit the deck and rolled back a bit, but he leapt back up as soon as he stopped. "What the heck was that!"

"Erahaha," the man laughed. "That was my Devil Fruit power! The Ghost Ghost fruit lets me become completely intangible at will. You should give up now while you still can,"

"Aha! I got it! We're the Grim Pirates!" Russell yelled suddenly catching everyone off guard and they all turned to face him. "What? It's like the Grim Reaper. Do you not like it?" he asked.

"Can't you see that you're in the middle of a fight!" the man yelled. "I am Phantasm the captain of the Phantom pirates,"

"Oh, so you're the captain," Russell said. "Well in that case, I'll fight you too. Zen let's go!" Russell and Zen rushed forward, but Clara intercepted them.

"If you want to get to the captain, you'll have to…" Clara began before Zen interrupted her by swinging his bone ax at her.

"You go on ahead and take care of ghost boy, Russ. I've got a score to settle with her," Zen said, smirking.

"Alright, just don't take too long alright," Russell called back as he jumped over Clara's head and renewed his charge against Phantasm.

As Russell ran towards him, Phantasm didn't move, as a matter of fact he didn't look too interested in what was going on around him. Russell launched a punch straight at his face, only for it to pass through, leaving Phantasm completely unharmed. Russell jumped back looking confused. "Hey, how the heck did you do that?" he asked.

"Weren't you paying attention when you're friend attacked me?" Phantasm asked, irritably.

"Uh, not really. I was too busy thinking of a cool name for my crew," Russell said, grinning. "By the way, you never did say if it was a good name or not,"

"Hmm, well, it's not the best name, but I have heard far worse ones," Phantasm said. "Once, I met a man who named his crew the… wait we're fighting, why am I critiquing you're crew name!" he yelled.

"I don't know, because I asked?" Russell guessed.

"Never mind that, can we just get back to fighting?" Phantasm sighed.

"OK, but only because you asked so nicely," Russell said as he charged again. This time he dropped down, and swiped his leg at Phantasm, trying to knock him down, but once again his attack phased right through his opponent. Still, Russell didn't let that stop him; he jumped up and launched a flurry of punches and kicks, all of them simply passing through his body. "This is really getting old. Stop using you're powers and fight like a man, will ya?"

"Okay, but only because you asked so nicely," Phantasm said mockingly. He solidified his hand and struck out with the claws. Russell jumped backwards, but the claws still grazed his chest. Russell smirked as he got an idea.

"Come on. This that all you got?" Russell taunted, sticking his tongue out to further anger his opponent. Phantasm growled and lunged forward again aiming his clawed gauntlet right at Russell's head. This time, however, Russell was ready and he dropped down and grabbed the arm as it passed over his head. Russell rolled back and pulled the surprised pirate captain into the air, then Russell planted his feet on Phantasm's chest and launched him up into the air. Russell jumped back up and readied himself for when his opponent landed. As soon as Phantasm landed, Russell charged forward ready to strike, but just as his fist was about to connect with the back of his head it sank into the ship and Russell's fist smashed through the wooden boards.

Phantasm pulled himself upright and smirked at Russell, who pulled his hand up from the hole he made. "I must commend you, you're the first person to land a blow on me since I ate my Devil Fruit,"

"Really?" Russell asked. "It has a pretty obvious weakness if you ask me,"

"Oh? And what would that be?"

"Hmph, you have to solidify yourself in order to land a blow on your target, meaning if they're quick enough they can counter your attack,"

"And you realized that if a tried to soften the blow by becoming intangible, I would sink into the ocean," Phantasm concluded. " Erahahaha, you really aren't half-bad. Why don't you join me, I'll even let your crew come as well if you like,"

"Thanks for the offer," Russell smirked. "But, I'm going fulfill my dreams and become a legendary pirate captain, not a legendary pirate lackey,"

"Are you sure?" Phantasm asked, to which Russell simply nodded, still grinning. "Very well, I'll try to make your death quick then!" Phantasm charged this time and began to swipe his gauntlets in wide arcs, forcing Russell to back up quickly. Russell continued to smirk as he saw in opening in his enemy's attacks, he jumped and launched a kick straight at Phantasm's head, hoping to knock him out with a quick hit, but to his surprise his kick went straight through his head. Before he could retreat, Phantasm slashed his claws into Russell's side, throwing him back.

"You were correct in your assumption that I had to solidify in order to attack you, but I only have to make my arm solid. When you caught my arm last time I was surprised and dropped my guard. That won't happen again," Phantasm explained.

Still, Russell refused to let that piece of information deter him. "So, only your arms have to be solid, huh? Fine then, I'll just have to break them then," Russell said rushing forward. _I hope the others are doing okay._

~With Zen~

Zen wasn't having any luck with his target either. He gasped for air as his attacks continued to do nothing against Clara. "Did I mention that I REALLY hate Logia Devil Fruit users?" he asked.

Clara chuckled. "What's the matter?" She asked mockingly. "Can't keep up with my Fog Fog fruit powers?"

"Please, I just don't like cowards who hide behind their powers. Mine may make me tough, but I'm not invincible," Zen said as he straightened up and prepared to continue the fight.

"That's exactly your problem, though. I AM invincible with my powers!" Clara said smirking. However, that statement just made Zen laugh.

"Hah! You really think that Devil Fruit will guarantee that you'll win?" Zen said as he formed large bone claws over his hands. "That will just make this fight all the more enjoyable when I beat you and sorry excuse for a captain!" This time Clara rushed in, angered at Zen's words. Zen simply prepared himself, waiting for the right moment to strike.

~With the others~

"These weaklings are just getting on my nerves!" Sarah yelled as she swatted another pirate away. After Russell and Zen started to take on the captain and first mate, the rest tried to finish off Reinhart and Pearl, and that left Sarah to protect them. She was surprised when Hiro-Shu joined in as well, whether it was pay back for what the pirates did, or to help them she couldn't tell, she didn't really care either as long as he helped.

What surprised her even more was how well he fought. She thought that he looked tough, and she knew that he could take a hit, a hit from _her_ no less, but nothing the pirates did seemed to bother him. Their swords and daggers just didn't seem to be able to cut him, and very few of the pirates could get a second attack, as soon as they struck the first time, Hiro-Shu would give them a devastating punch that would seed them flying back.

Sarah shook these thoughts from her head as she heard someone moan from behind her. She punched another pirate back away before turning her head to see Pearl sitting up. "It's about time you got up from your beauty rest. Not that it did any good," Sarah teased.

"You?" Pearl growled. "Why'd it have to be you who came?"

"Your other friends are here to," Hiro-Shu said battering away another group of enemies. "They're fighting the captain and first mate,"

"Uh okay" Pearl said unsure. "Hey, Sarah, whose this guy?"

"Oh, that's Hiro-Shu he's sorta my personal bodyguard now," Sarah replied.

"No, I'm not," Hiro-Shu retorted not taking his eyes off of the pirates.

"Oh, you're no fun," Sarah said. She looked over at Pearl "So, are you going to help or just sit there?"

Perl stood up and drew her sword and moved forward to help hold off the pirates. She clashed swords with several of them and was able to disarm or injure them enough to make them pull back. "Hey, I have a question," Pearl said as she parried an incoming sword and then trusted her blade at her attacker. "Why are just standing here?"

"Duh, because Reinhart is still unconscious," Sarah replied rolling her eyes, as she tossed a pirate into an oncoming wave of them.

"But, Reinhart's not here," Pearl said confused.

"Huh?" Sarah turned around and sure enough Reinhart was gone! "Okay, when the heck did he leave!"

"I don't know, it's not like him to just leave us here…is it?" Pearl asked.

"How should I know I barely knew the guy," Sarah answered turning back around to fight.

"It doesn't pay to have a coward in your group, oh, no, no, no," a voice said. Immediately, all of the pirates stopped attacking and let a tall man through. He had bright spikey red hair, and wore a long white coat over a bright yellow shirt and blue pants; he had a large grin on his face as well. He stood in stark contrast when compared to the other pirates, who wore dull clothing and had grim expressions. "I am Art, the second mate of this depressing crew," he said bowing.

"Great," Pearl said rolling her eyes. "A clown, this is just what we need right now,"

"Ah, but it is," Art said, still grinning. "After all, if you're going to die, you might as well die smiling," with that he rushed forward straight at Pearl, who thrust her sword towards him. To her surprise however, he leaned back, making a perfect ninety degree angle, allowing the blade to pass harmlessly over him. He then grabbed her sword and tossed her to the side. "Come now, is that all you can do? Tut, tut," he said mockingly.

Sarah launched a punch straight at his side but he twisted out of the way and elbowed the back of her head. But, before he could move, Hiro-Shu wrapped his arms around him from behind trapping him in a vice like grip. "What, no comment or smart remark?" Hiro-Shu asked.

"No, I believe that action speaks louder than words," Art replied. He began to twist and writhe, with a final turn he slipped free from Hiro-Shu's grasp and launched a kick at his side; of course the kick did little to Hiro-Shu.

"That was a weak hit," Hiro-Shu commented as he dropped into a fighting stance.

"Yes, well, I'll admit that physically I'm not that strong," Art said. "But, you see there are different types of fighters, you're clearly a bruiser, someone who uses their strength to their advantage. There are others who use speed to win fights, and some who use tricks, and then there are people like me who use their flexibility to fight. I move my body in ways that can't predict, so no matter how strong you are, it won't do you any good if you can't hit me,"

"Well," Hiro-Shu said, we'll just have to see about that won't we,"

~With Russell~

Russell was still having trouble with Phantasm, the man was constantly on guard and as soon as his attacks either hit or missed he'd make his arms intangible to avoid them getting damaged. "Don't you ever get tired?" Russell asked panting.

"Not when I have to do so little work," Phantasm replied. "Look at you, you're practically defeating yourself," he laughed.

_Man, he's right. If I don't end this soon, I'll be too tired to fight, but he's not making it easy. He keeps is arms intangible as often as he can and it's not like he has anything else solid…or does he? _Russell grinned as he thought up a plan. He readied his scythe and rushed forward.

"Do you really think that you're weapon will help things?" Phantasm asked as he prepared to finish Russell off.

"Yes I do," Russell said as he approached his target. Before Phantasm could strike at him with his claws, Russell slammed his scythe into his foot. Phantasm's eyes widened in pain, and he dropped his guard. Russell wasn't going to waste a second. He brought his scythe back around and slashed Phantasm's side, then he punched him in the stomach and finished with a kick to the head; knocking the pirate captain down.

All of the fighting stopped as everyone turned to see the outcome of the fight. Phantasm's men were shocked, they didn't believe their captain could be touched let alone be beaten. "Ha, he wasn't so tough once you figured out a way around his powers," Russell said grinning. He started to walk towards his crew when Zen called out to him.

"Russ behind you!"

Before he could turn around he saw Phantasm's clawed gauntlet sticking through his chest. Only he didn't feel any pain. "Allow me to be the first to congratulate you on your near victory over me. Not only did you realize that my arms needed to be solid to hurt you, but you also realized that my feet needed to be solid to stand on the ship, most impressive. But, this is where it ends for you, all I have to do is solidify my arm, and you'll die. Now tell you're crew to surrender and I may let you live," Phantasm said.

Russell looked over at his crew, all of them fought so hard, could he really just ask them to give so that he _might_ have a chance to live? "What kind of captain would I be if I put my crew in danger so that I could live?"

"Russ, think about this alright?" Zen said. "We're going to be fine; you have an arm sticking in your chest, that won't end well,"

"Don't worry about me Zen, remember, something always happens and everything works out fine in the end," Russell said trying to comfort his friends.

"So you won't surrender?" Phantasm asked surprised.

"Heh, nope," Russell said. _Good luck you guys, sorry that I couldn't see you complete your dreams. _

"Very well then," Phantasm said. "NOW DIE!"

Russell was ready for the pain, he was ready to feel the cold steel of the gauntlet inside his chest, and he was also ready to launch one last attack. Once the arm solidified, he would punch with every last bit of strength he had left; at the very least it would help the others when they fought him. But, none of those things came to pass. Instead he felt a push against his side and he fell to floor of the deck. When he looked up he was shocked to see his savior. It was Reinhart. But, what shocked him even more was that the gauntlet meant for him was now in Reinhart.

"I'd …appreciate it… if you kept… your hands… off… of…my…captain," Reinhart gasped before collapsing to the ground.

"REINHART!" Russell and his crew yelled. Russell rushed to his down nakama, he was breathing but barely, and pool of blood forming underneath him did not bode well.

"I'm sorry…captain…it looks like I…wasn't much help…in the end…but I'm… glad…that I could…help in this fight," Reinhart said.

"Hey, hey Reinhart, I'm your captain remember. I didn't give you permission to die," Russell said. Don't you have a dream you want to accomplish, you can't die until that's done,"

However, Reinhart didn't answer he passed out from the blood loss. "What are you so upset about?" Phantasm asked. "Crew members are just tools; tools that help us captains fulfill our destinies. Your crewmate understood that and like a good tool sacrificed himself to save you; too bad that in the end, it will have been for nothing,"

"Is that what you think?" Russell asked as he stood up. "Reinhart didn't take that blow because he thought he was a tool, he took that blow because he was my friend, my nakama," Russell turned to face Phantasm, his eyes hardened. "Pearl, take care of Reinhart, okay,"

Pearl ran to her crewmate's side to try to save him. Several pirates tried to intercept her, but they were cut down with bone knives from Zen. "You punks stay out of this," he said in a cold voice.

"Erahah, do you really think you can save him, how pathetic," Phantasm said.

"Shut up," Russell said, glaring at him. "You like your precious ghost abilities huh? Well how about I turn you into a REAL ghost!"

AN: Wow, it took me a looooooong time to update and I apologize for that. Part of the reason is because things like work came up, but it was mostly laziness on my part, so again I apologize.


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